


Don't love just one

by MBlack93



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Abused Draco Malfoy, Abused Harry Potter, Abusive Lucius Malfoy, Albus Dumbledore Bashing, BAMF Draco Malfoy, BAMF Harry Potter, BAMF Hermione Granger, BAMF Minerva McGonagall, Bisexual Draco Malfoy, Bisexual Harry Potter, Blow Jobs, Dolores Umbridge is Her Own Warning, Draco Malfoy & Harry Potter Friendship, First Time Blow Jobs, Hand Jobs, Harry Potter is a Horcrux, Hermione Granger has amazing parents, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, Master of Death Harry Potter, Minor Sirius Black/Remus Lupin, Multi, POV Draco Malfoy, POV Harry Potter, POV Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley Bashing, Sad Draco Malfoy, Sirius Black Free from Azkaban, Soul Bond, eventually, only in first chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:14:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 28
Words: 105,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25569568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MBlack93/pseuds/MBlack93
Summary: Not complete yet!Starting in third year, Harry is confused (when the hell not) his best girl - friend is becoming her own and becoming maybe more, but why the hell is that blond one also in his mind.. As if he hasn't had enough to cope with. Harry, Hermione and Draco the silver trio. Harry/Hermione/Draco love in the making!Not a very good description I know! First couple of chapters are short but they are going to be longer in the later chapters.This is my first fanfic so I’m really nervous about it and excited! Let me know what you think!Ron/Dumbledore bashing ahead.A lot of love to my Beta Senyra93!
Relationships: Draco Malfoy & Theodore Nott, Hermione Granger & Draco Malfoy & Harry Potter, Hermione Granger & Harry Potter & Draco Malfoy & Pansy Parkinson & Theodore Nott & Blaise Zabini, Hermione Granger & Pansy Parkinson, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Remus Lupin & Theodore Nott, Sirius Black & Harry Potter, Sirius Black & Remus Lupin & Harry Potter, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 33
Kudos: 160





	1. Chapter 1

Harry hated the summer. It just meant he needed to stay at Privet Drive again. Away from his friends again. Apart from magic, still - doing chores the whole summer was not the worst part. It was the mental and sometimes physical abuse. "FREAK, why can't you do anything right. Why don't you go away?" Dudley sneered, his aunt Petunia chuckled from the other side on the table. "Well, Duddykins," Harry already started having enough of this day, and it was only 9 in the morning. "Why won't I just go away as you so kindly put it." He heard his Uncle Vernon scoff as if he wanted to say something. "I just love it here so dearly; I just couldn't stay away from all the love you give me," Harry said, with just a little sarcasm. Just a little too much. 

"Well, freak, you know we only let you stay here from the deepest kindest part of our hearts," Vernon said, not even looking up from his paper. "As if." Harry hissed under his breath. "What was that?" Petunia nearly screeched. "Nothing auntie." He said quickly, his stomach started to grumble, and he looked longingly to the enormous breakfast Vernon and Dudley had on their plates. He only had one burned toast on his. Petunia saw his eyes wander and grabbed his plate and threw it on the floor. "If you are going to be difficult today, you don't need to eat. Go outside and start with this list of chores. When you are finished, you can continue here with the dishes and get a head start on lunch. And no - you aren't part of that either. We have a guest." She said with a smile on her face. Harry started to inhale profoundly through his nose and out through his mouth. _Just five weeks to go, just five weeks to go, just five more miserable weeks with hunger and taunts._ Harry repeated in his head like a mantra. 

"Who is coming over, mum?" Dudley asked with his mouth full of bacon and eggs; Harry nearly gagged when he saw it. Dudley was worse than Ron how Ron wasn't as fat as Dudley amazed Harry sometimes. He ate just as much and is just as disgusting at doing so. A pang of pain also ringed in Harry. He hadn't had heard anything from his best friend. 

Could he still call him his best friend if every time he wasn't near it seems as if they didn't know each other? And after what he did? Harry couldn't forget. He didn't respond to the letters Harry sent with fear of his own life and Hedwig's. 

Ron also was always grumbling about Hermione and was just god awful to her this year. When she was petrified in the Hospital Wing, he only went once to visit, and then he tried to look under her skirt. Harry almost punched him in the face, but Madam Pomfrey just walked in right then and couldn't. Harry reminded Ron to leave and not bother to come back to the wing when she was there. "You're mental Harry, she isn't going to know - you know." He said indignantly. Harry was too flabbergasted to react. _What the freaking hell?! You should not be doing this PERIOD_. But they sort of made up when they went in the chamber to save Ginny. Harry only to be almost killed in progress. He really couldn't catch a break. 

"Are you listening boy?!" Vernon yelled. Harry looked up, apparently just staring into space. As if they didn't already think that he was a freak. "Sorry uncle what was it?" Harry said sweetly, realizing he just missed everything they had been saying. Vernons eyes grew to slits. "Petunia was saying that Marge is coming. You remember her, don't you? Or is all this rubbish you call education meddling with your brain?" He sneered. Harry again found himself breathing deeply in and out. "Why?" he said - just barely holding on. Remembering all the physical abuse that was on its way with 'aunt' Marge...

"She doesn't need a reason boy. She is my sister and is staying here for a visit. And if you are going to try ANYTHING REMOTELY WEIRD THA-" Harry just looked at Uncle Vernon and narrowed his eyes. "WHAT WOULD I DO THAT IS REMOTELY WEIRD? FIGHT BACK WHEN ONE OF HER DOGS IS TRYING TO PULL ME APART? SAY SOMETHING WHEN SHE HUMILIATES ME? OR INSULTS MY PARENTS?" Harry bellowed; he had enough. He just wanted to run away and never come back. He started for the door because he knew there was going to be retribution, but it was too late. Vernon was fuming and turning red from his neck to the top of his head. When Harry reached for the door to pull it open, he slammed it shut again. He looked at Harry, and Harry knew he was going to be bruised up tonight.

Harry was still fuming and just needed his wand. He couldn't care less. Everything could go to hell. He looked past Vernon and saw Dudley smirking, and Petunia looked a little green, he must be imagining it. Vernon pulled his hand back, and Harry saw the fist coming for his face, and then it all went black.


	2. Chapter 2

"Why isn't he responding, mom? I wrote him five letters in the last week? Harry ALWAYS writes back. ALWAYS MOM!" Hermione just knew something was wrong. Harry responded the first few weeks in the summer, but now. A week has gone by, and still no response. She was feeling anxious. He told her what they did to him. But when she went to Professor McGonagall, she said, "If it were that bad, Pr. Dumbledore would not have let him go to his aunt and uncle now, would he?" Hermione thought about that, and that seemed indeed far fetched. Pr. Dumbledore knew everything, and he wouldn't throw Harry in such an environment, would he? She started to have doubts about it. 

"I just want to know if everything is alright with him, mom…" She pleaded with her mother. Helen Granger looked at her daughter and saw the sadness. "It seems to me that you are worried. Why wouldn't he be alright?" She asked. She saw that her daughter began to chew her lip. The sign that she was nervous. "You can tell me anything; you know that, right?" She said as kindly as she could to reassure Hermione. Hermione looked in her mother's eyes, contemplating if she should say something about the abuse she thought Harry was experiencing. She took a deep breath. ‘’’Mom, if I tell you this, can you promise me that we can help him? Even if that means to take him away from there?" Helen thought about it and didn't like what this could mean. 

Was the boy being abused? Mentally? Physically? Sexually? "Honey, I would do anything in my power to help him." She said truthfully. Hermione sighed with relief and threw her arms around her mother's neck. She sniffed a little and pulled back to look in her mother's eyes again. "Mom, he told me this in secret. But I think he needs our help. I - I can't. I can't lose him." She confessed. She knew her mother would think that that was a weird statement. She just admitted he was maybe something more than just her best friend. She needed him in her life, by her side. They could tell each other everything. Not even Ron knew the most things she told Harry. And Harry only confided in her about the abuse from his family.

When he told her at night late in the common room, when Ron already was gone to sleep, she could only cry. She cried and hugged Harry, and he also cried but hid in her bushy hair so no one could see. Only Hermione knew that side of Harry. He was so afraid of going 'home,' so scared of the hunger he would feel that summer, fearful of the yellings and where they usually ended with. Hermione knew it all shifted for her then. He wasn't just her best friend anymore. He was a survivor in her eyes, and so, so brave. 

Helen heard the desperation in her daughter's tone and saw the fear in her eyes. "Please tell me, honey, please, then we can look for a solution to help him," Hermione told her mother everything. She talked for hours. She cried in between because of the fear she had for Harry. When she was finished, she was forsworn. Could her mother help him? 

"Thank you for telling me, Hermione. I can't imagine what he's going through. I'll talk to your father, to come up with something to help him." Helen promised. Hermione was extremely relieved because they were going to try to help Harry and that she didn't have to tell her father all this because she didn't know if she could do this again. "Now I am going to make something to eat for the two of us, and then you are going to bed. Tomorrow we are going to find Harry. Okay?" Her mother promised. Hermione threw her arms around her mother's neck and sobbed. "Thank You, Mom!" She said when she calmed down. 

Hermione woke up the next day, still feeling a little unstable because of the emotional rollercoaster she'd been through the day before. But she was going to pull herself together. Today she was going to save Harry. She felt something flutter in her stomach at the idea. She knew Harry wasn't only her best friend anymore; she knew he meant a lot more to her. 

When she came downstairs, her mother was making breakfast. Hermione was nervous and only took a muffin her mother had made. "Okay, so here is the plan. Your father is almost ready when he is; we will go to the address you have of Harry. When we are there, we are just going to ring the doorbell and are going to be very, very friendly to the person who answers, agreed?" Her mother asked. Hermione simply nodded her head. "Okay, then when we are inside, we are going to ask about Harry; if we are to believe the stories, they are going to be angry or will think they are being threatened. So we are just going to say that we are going to take him away, and nobody needs to know about this, still following me?" 

"Yes, mom I think they wanna get rid of him as soon as possible I hope this works." Hermione started to nibble on her bottom lip with her teeth. Just then, her father walked in. "Are we ready? We need to get going to save your boyfriend". He said with a smug grin on his face. "DAD! He is not my boyfriend!" But Hermione turned a lovely shade of red just then. "Okay okay," He grumbled a little. "But we are going to get Harry, of which I heard a LOT about the last past years. So are you ready?" Hermione jumped from her place at the table. "Yes, sir!" She fake saluted to her father. He laughed a bit. "Okay let's go. We really should be there as soon as possible if everything is correct what you told us." Hermione got her coat and went outside the door. "COME ON!" She yelled at her parents. Her parents looked at each other and took a deep breath. Hopefully, this wouldn't end up in heartbreak.

* * *

Harry woke up. He was in the cupboard under the stairs again. He was still recovering from the beatings he took from last week. He couldn't get to Hedwig, couldn't write to Hermione. He kind of gave up on Ron. He almost got nothing to eat the past week and was still recovering from the injuries he got. _It feels like I have two broken ribs, and I see a lot of bruises on my arms and stomach, and that is only what is visible._ He knew his glasses were fractured as well, but he did not know how his face looked. Every time Petunia opened the door to give him some water and bread, she looked disgusted. But that wasn't anything new. He was tired and lonely. He didn't know how he could survive the upcoming couple of weeks if this was going to continue. He also couldn't reach his wand and other stuff from his suitcase. He felt so out of touch with his magic; it was eerie. 

He had bizarre dreams for the last couple of nights. First, it had been a black dog, running in a field towards him and acting friendly and playful. Second, it had been a forest where he was running through, following a person with white-blond hair. He knew who it was - but couldn't find the reason behind it. Then there were the dreams of Hermione, of mere memories. About how they could talk and just hang in the common room and laughing in the library were madam Pince just 'ssshhhdd' them, which made them laugh even harder. How she would lecture him about everything because she read it somewhere and then there was a dream about a kiss -that had shaken him a lot. He knew Hermione would not think of him that way. But the dream was very nice, and since everything had become complete shit since last week, it was something to hold on to. 

Still, the dream about following Draco Malfoy had been a sort of surprise. He hated the git. But the dream felt nice. Like he should belong there with him. In the dream, Malfoy looked back several times and just smiled. It suited him. He got a shiver on his spine. _Are you reallyyyyy thinking about Draco Malfoy? The git who is agonizing you for the last two years? And what the bloody hell are thinking that that smile is nice?_ He demanded from himself. 

Just then, someone rang the doorbell. He knew he needed to be quiet. So he wouldn't get another beating. Only aunt Petunia was at home. Vernon and Dudley went to Vernon's job. So he could let Dudley see what he should do in the future. Dudley was not pleased because he just wanted to watch the telly the whole day. Harry smirked to himself. Listening when aunt Petunia was answering the door. "Hello!" She happily exclaimed. _Like she even is that happy to see them. She just wants to spend the day looking out of the window and spy on everyone and everything._ Harry thought to himself. "Hello, are you Petunia Dursley?" He heard a familiar voice say. He promptly sat up. Almost hitting his head on the stairs above him. _Was that..._ _No, it couldn't. -Could it?_ "Yes, well, I am young lady, and who are you, and who is this with you?" Petunia still acted sweetly. "Well, hello, this is my daughter Hermione, I am Dan, and this is my wife, Helen. We are the Grangers. May we come in?" A manly voice, apparently Dan, said. "Uhm, yes, of course, would you like some tea?" Petunia sounded a little apprehensive but still let them in. Harry was listening intently at the door. _Could it be? Is she here for me??_ Harry was almost hyperventilating from excitement. When he heard the door closing, he wanted to scream. But Hermione just said something then. "We are here for Harry; you know Harry Potter. He is my best friend, and I haven't heard from him, and I am very worried.", Petunia growled a little at that. "What?! Are you some kind of freak too?" Harry couldn't take it anymore. "HERMIONE! HERMIONE, I AM HERE! IN THE CUPBOARD UNDER THE STAIRS! PLEASE! LET ME OUT!" 

Dan was flabbergasted. Was that boy locked up in the cupboard? How the hell could somebody let this happen? How could nobody have helped him? At school? In the neighborhood? He also did not appreciate that his daughter just was called a freak! "WHAT IS THE BOY DOING IN THE CUPBOARD?" He bellowed. He saw Petunia flinch away from him. "Because he is a freak, and we don't want him here!" She screeched. "WELL GET HIM THE FUCK OUT OF THERE. WE ARE GOING TO TAKE HIM WITH US!" Dan again bellowed. He was not having any of this. He could hear Harry pound on the door. Hermione flew through the hallway and started to unlock the three locks on the door. 

"Where is the boy his stuff? We are going to take him with us and all of his possessions." Helen asked, with contained fury in her voice. "It is upstairs. And take him. We don't want him. It is only because of that fool, Dumbledore, we have him here. And only because he pays us and…-" She stopped. The door unlocked, and Harry flew in Hermione's arms. Hermione sobbed and sank to her knees, taking Harry with her. "Harry? Harry? Are you okay?" She asked but already knew that it was the wrong question. When she pulled back to look at him, she saw the anguish on his face. He had lost a lot of weight. A weight he couldn't bear to lose. His left eye was bloodshot, and his glasses were broken. His nose was at a wrong angle, and you could see faded bruises on his face. Harry looked at her and started to hug her again very tightly. He must be dreaming - there was no other option that this had to be a dream. He is getting out of Privet Drive number four.


	3. Chapter 3

Draco knew something was wrong with his life. If it wasn’t at school, it was at home. It looked like something in the universe was hating him. This year, again, his grades were not as good as those of Granger were, and his dad couldn’t let it go.  _ Why couldn’t he let it go? _ He loved his father. But not as much as he feared him. One look of his father and he whimpered. At school, he thought he could finally getaway. Away from the looks of disappointment, the sneers of taunt that he wasn’t good enough. Not with his grades because a muggle-born could beat him, not with flying because Potter beat him again and again. And it was not that he hated them. That he liked to taunt them and sneer at them. No. He just wanted to be friends with Potter in the first year. But he refused him. He liked Granger when he first saw her. But her swotty attitude was a real buzz kill. Then he heard she was muggle-born. As if the stars aligned and thought nope. You can’t like these two. They are better than you in every way. 

Then they beat Slytherin to the house cup in the first year. And his father wouldn’t let him forget. ‘’Draco,’’ He drawled. ‘’I heard something on the board, and I am not happy with it.’’ Draco tried not to hide behind his mom in the first summer break after school. ‘’Ah, yes, I heard that a little know it al mudblood - beat you in all the classes.’’ He twirled the fire whiskey in his glass and continued. ‘’Do you know what your punishment is going to be?’’ He raised his eyebrow and looked at his son, who was cowering behind his mother. ‘’Cissy, get out.’’ He sneered at his wife. Narcissa Malfoy trembled but was no hero. She left the study. Draco shifted from foot to foot, not daring to look his father straight in the eye. ‘’Well? Are you going to answer me?’’ His father snapped. ‘’N-n-no sir. I-I..’’ A hard crack echoed through the study. Draco looked up to see that his father just hit his desk with his staff. ‘’Stop. Stuttering.’’ Lucius snarled at his son. Draco gulped.  _ Try not to cry. Try not to cry. DO.NOT.CRY.  _ He swallowed and took a deep breath. ‘’No, sir, I don’t know what my punishment is going to be.’’ He rushed out. 

Lucius sat back in his lounge chair, again swirling the glass and looking at the swirling liquid within. ‘’I think I am going to..’’ He paused for effect. ‘’I think I am going to kill your horse and break your broom.’’ He said, looking very calm. Draco took a deep breath again and tried to swallow. ‘’If that’s your choice of punishment, father. I am going to accept it.’’ Draco tried not to let his fear slip in his voice. His broom was broken by his favorite house-elf Dobby. His horse was gone when he went to the stables. 

He tried not to think about it too much. He told Dobby everything, about school and Potter and Granger, and how they were smart and helped others. ‘’And his eyes are so green, Dobby!’’ A couple of weeks later, he heard his father talk about school for his second year and a plan about a monster in the castle, and he panicked. He asked Dobby to prevent Potter to come to Hogwarts. He knew he KNEW his father was going to threaten Potter. He couldn’t let that happen. When the idiot and Weasel showed up with a flying car, which was kind of awesome, he knew it was going to be a hellish year. And another year to pretend he believed everything his father told him. Pretend to be smugger, then he felt. Pretend to be more than he was. He even tried to help Granger with figuring the monster out. He ripped the page about the basilisk from a book from the restricted section and put it loose in a History of Magic copy. He knew she would be looking there. Thank god she figured it out before she was dead and that she looked around that corner with a mirror. 

When Potter saved the youngest Weasel and got out of the chamber, he was so happy, until his father showed up and Potter freed Dobby. A smart move, and now Dobby wouldn’t be hurt anymore. But he felt lonely without him. Now he was back from the second year. Without his favorite house-elf and just trying to keep his head down this summer. Only two more years at home, and then he could emancipate and get the bloody hell out of Malfoy Manor. Get away from the prejudice, away from the pureblood nonsense his father oozed and preached. At least he had it a little better than Theo. 

Draco heard a ‘pop’ and looked up to see his new elf standing there. ‘’What do you want?’’ He sneered. He just wanted to stay in his room and read. Maybe even write a little or paint. ‘’Master Lucius request you, sir.’’ The elf squeaked. Draco sighed and stood. He could not not show up when his father requested it. It would mean another punishment. He followed the elf downstairs to the small ballroom.  _ Honestly, who needs a small and big ballroom? _ The elf knocked on the door and let Draco in. ‘’You requested me, sir?’’ Draco tried to remove the sarcasm from his voice. He succeeded. ‘’Well, yes, have you practiced your occlumency?’’ Lucius put the folder he was looking at down. ‘’Severus says you missed a few classes. Is this correct?’’ He raised his left eyebrow as if Draco was going the challenge his intel. Of course, Severus would tell his father that he missed a couple of lessons. 

Severus was his godfather, but still in his father’s pocket. ‘’Yes, I missed a few classes. But it was only because... ‘’ He did not have a reason. So he just stopped talking. ‘’Well, if you did not finish your classes, you probably think you are good enough. Let’s try that out.’’ Lucius snapped. ‘’Father, NO!’’ At the same time, Lucius yelled, ‘’Legilimens!’’. Draco tried to block him. He succeeded a little. But still, his father pushed through. He saw flashes of Theo and him laughing in a field, Potter flying past him to catch the snitch. Granger answering a question in class before he got the chance, Blaise and him playing exploding snap, Greg and Vince asked him things about the heir of Slytherin, Weasel puking snails. His father pulled back. ‘’I see you had an exciting year. What was it with Goyle and Crabbe? They seemed odd.’’ His father stated. Draco was still catching his breath. He hated to be vulnerable like that. And his father abused this. He just wanted to go back to his room and lock himself in. ‘’I don’t know what was wrong with them.

The next day nothing was weird, so I just thought they ate something wrong.’’ He gasped. ‘’Mmhh, and that mudblood? Still, beating you in class? And Potter,’’ he snarled. ‘’beating you also in Quidditch. Well, we already knew that one.’’ Draco had caught his breath again. ‘’Yes, father, the mudblood is still beating me in class. It’s like she inhales books.’’ He answered with caution. He cringed internally at the word mudblood. But his father couldn’t know that it would be catastrophic. ‘’You should be better at everything, you are superior in blood and wealth. Act like it.’’ Lucius snarled. 

Draco knew his life was hell. He just needed to survive a couple of years and put his head down. But deep down, he knew it wasn’t going to be that simple.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter universe, that's JK!

Harry woke up and took a deep breath. He just woke up from a dream about the big black dog, again. But something was different about his surroundings. He knew he wasn't with the Dursleys. He wasn't going to be hungry today, not being hit today, not being yelled at today, and that felt great. The bed he lay in was heaven. So soft in comparison with the cardboard mattress from the Dursleys.  _ Stop thinking about those horrible people. You aren't going back.  _ Harry smiled to himself. He was freaking happy. He was with Hermione at her home with her parents and not - I repeat not with his horrible family. A knock at the door woke him up fully. "Harry? Are you awake?" Hermione's voice fluttered through the door. Harry couldn't stop smiling en jumped out of bed. What was a bad idea because he was still a little sore. He flinched a little and got to the door to open it. "Hi' Mione, good morning." He smiled at her, and she smiled back. It was lovely to see how her face lit up at that. "Are you ready for breakfast? Mom made pancakes!" She claimed happily. Harry frowned. Didn't he need to help with the cooking? Or chores? He should ask Mr. of Mrs. Granger about that. Hermione turned to go down the stairs, and Harry followed. Still in his pajama, but Hermione was also in PJ's, so it shouldn't be a problem hopefully. He didn't want to leave or worse, go back… "Good morning mum!" Helen Granger looked at her daughter's face and smiled. Then she looked at Harry, who was standing uncomfortable in de doorway. "Good morning honey! Good morning Harry, what do you want on your pancakes?" She smiled with this question. "Oh - please Mrs. Granger, you should eat first with Hermione, I can clean if you want." He said. 

Mrs. Granger found herself staring at the thin, black-haired boy. "Why would you clean? We haven't asked you, and you don't have to if you don't want to. Hermione has some chores off course, but you are our guest, Harry." She said carefully.  _ He sounds like he expects to clean and do everything here. That needs to change, and the boy needs to eat.  _ Helen thought. Harry looked taken aback. Why were these people he only saw once so nice to him? "Well, I always cooked and cleaned in the house with my family," he said. "I did all the chores and stuff. I can cook if you want." He looked a little shameful at that. Like he did not want to do it. But if he needed to be helpful around, he would do anything as long as he did not need to go back or away. "Harry, listen very carefully." Helen started. "You are our guest. You are a boy. Who was in a terrible situation and who needs first to rest and be a kid. We don't expect you to be anything else." She smiled at Harry, and Harry's eyes filled with tears. They wanted to help him. That's a first...

After two weeks of blissful peace and quiet, Hermione and Harry grew closer than ever. They had been doing homework, reading ahead for History of Magic, DADA, transfiguration, and potions. Harry was a little behind, but with Hermione's help, he got better at it fast. He really wanted to learn, and without Ron as a distraction, it went a lot smoother. Then there was an owl at the window. Hermione went to open it, and it flew down in front of Harry. He scratched the owl and gave him a little bacon of his plate and took the letter. 

_ Dear Harry, _

_ I found out that you no longer live with your aunt and uncle. Would you please meet me in Diagon Alley tomorrow to explain this? This are dangerous time my boy. You need to be more careful.  _

_ I will be at the Leaky Cauldron at 1 o'clock. _

_ Yours truly _

_ Albus Dumbledore  _

Harry frowned upon the letter and gave it to Hermione, who was practically bouncing to read it. She skimmed the letter twice and frowned. "You did tell him before what they did to you, right?" She asked. Harry sighed. Yes, he told Dumbledore, yes he told McGonagall, he even tried to tell Snape. But they all turned him away. "Yes I did.. he did not believe me or did not care. I don't want to go back to the Dursleys. They want to kill me or seriously hurt me." Harry worried. Hermione put a hand on his shoulder and he relaxed a little. "You are not going back. But we need preparations. I think we need to go to Diagon Alley today. Just the two of us. We can go to Gringotts. I read that they hate abuse and they can protect wizards even underaged. We should talk to them as soon as possible!" Hermione said. 

Just then, her mother walked in and took in the scene. "What happened? Is something wrong?" She asked. "Mom, we need to go to Diagon Alley. It would be great if you could give us a ride to London. But I think we are going to stay awhile there. I have the feeling we need to take care of a lot of things." Hermione told her mother. Helen's brow furrowed. "I don't like the idea that two teenagers are going to be alone in London." She sighed. "But I know we can't come with you to stay in Diagon Alley. We can visit but not stay there, and the age of people in the wizarding world works differently, but you are not sleeping in the same room. Is that clear?" Her eyebrows were raised in a challenge, Harry and Hermione turned scarlet. "MOM! No, of course not, I am thirteen, for god's sake, almost fourteen!" Hermione burst out. 

Harry snickered a little behind his hand. Helen was an amazing woman and he could see the similarities in Hermione. Both were staring at each other with their hands on their hips. It looked very comical. "Mrs. Granger, we will go to Gringotts to my safe. I have inherited enough money for two rooms. I really want to repay you for what you have done for me. And I will not take no for an answer." Harry told her with determination. Helen was perplexed. "You don't have to pay for her room." She said. "No, I know I don't, but I need her with me, so it is purely selfish of me, to be honest." He said with a sly smile. 

Hermione watched this like a tennis match and waited for her mom to approve. She read a lot about the wizarding world and would do anything to help her best friend. "Please, mom. This is really important. Professor Dumbledore wants to speak with Harry tomorrow. And if he wants to send him back, we don't know what the Dursleys would do. If we can talk to the goblins, maybe they will have a solution." She pleaded. Her mother looked in those big brown eyes and knew she was a goner. "Okay, I will drive you, but you are going to write to me every day, and next week we are still going on holiday for a couple of days. And September first is in two weeks." She turned to Harry, "we would have taken you to on holiday, but we only have three tickets." She said sadly. Harry felt his heart swell, how nice that they actually thought about him. "It is no problem Mrs. Granger, I understand, and I probably can stay in the Leaky Cauldron until the end of the break." He did not look forward to spending time alone without Hermione, but he would manage. It would only be five days alone before they were going back to Hogwarts.

Two hours later, they were in London and going into the Leaky Cauldron. They got two rooms and Harry made his reservation until the morning of September first. When they put their stuff away, Hermione asked if he had heard anything from Ron. "No, I did not. But I didn't write to him either since I was with you. He told me that they were on holiday in Egypt. He was boasting about it. I did not like it." Harry said warily. Hermione scowled. ''I wrote to him at the beginning of summer to ask what he would get you for your birthday, but he did not reply. Did he send you anything?" Harry thought back to his birthday when he was still locked up. He could not get anything on that day. He only got water and bread. "No, but I did not get anything to be honest. I was still locked up at the Dursleys. They gave me water and bread. I felt like a prisoner." Harry shivered at the memory. Hermione gazed at him, her eyes a little damp. "Ooo, Harry. I am glad I could talk to my mother and father to save you and take you away from those god-awful people. I really want to hex them!" Hermione hugged Harry close and he blushed and pulled away from Hermione a little awkward. "Thank you 'Mione, without you I probably would still be there." He said with still a slight blush on his cheeks. They went downstairs and to the back of the hotel to go to Diagon Alley. 

It wasn't as busy as the last time Harry went to Diagon Alley. They went straight to the big building of Gringotts and got in line. When it was his turn, Harry gave the goblin his wand. "Sir, I don't have the key to my vault. Rubeus Hagrid is the key keeper of it and I never got it from him, but I really need to talk to someone about my current situation." He said to the goblin. The goblin checked his wand and looked at Harry. "Finally, you have come to see us. It was a long time coming. My name is Snaglok. I will take you to the vault keeper of the Potter vault, I see you have somebody with you. Do you trust her?" The goblin, named Snaglok, asked. "With my life." Harry answered truthfully. Hermione blushed a little at that. Snaglok only nodded and made the motion that they needed to follow him. They went to a back door and into a small hallway. 

At room 4563, they stopped and Snaglok knocked. "Come in!" Sounded from inside. When the door closed behind them, the goblin seated behind the desk looked up. "Aahh Mister Potter. Finally you have come to us. My name is Ricbert. Who is your company?" The goblin asked. "Her name is Hermione Granger, I trust her and she is here to help me. I have a rough past, and she read that you could help me to be independent. You see, she saved me from my legal guardians who abused me, but I am afraid my Headmaster wants to send me back to them and I really can't do that. They might kill me." The last sentence was almost a whisper. The goblins huffed and grumbled and spat on the ground. "How dare they! You are a descendant of the house of Potter. You are the defeater of the Dark Lord when you were mere an infant. You only should be treated with respect!" Ricbert said with disdain in his voice. "Can you help me? I don't want to go back. I just want my own life." Harry pleaded. 

Ricbert sighed and mentioned they should be seated and asked Snaglok to get tea. "Mister Potter, my apologies for my outburst but it is nasty to hear that you were treated like that. We at Gringotts indeed have special meanings for bending the wizarding laws to help young ones in need. We were expecting you because it is proper for a wizard of your standing to come at the age of twelve to be introduced to your holdings if there are any present. Of course, with your background, you have a lot of holdings and fundings. We can go through them and talk about the actions we are going to take so you can be independent and no longer have to live with your 'guardians' - also, we wanted to talk to you because there is funding taken from your accounts. I begin to expect that's without your knowledge and must be stopped." Harry almost spit out his tea. Holdings? Fundings? He knew he had a lot of money in his vault, but it almost sounded like there was a lot more to it and someone was stealing money? "Please Sir, I did not know about this, and am I correct to understand there is more than just the vault I visited when I was eleven?"

"Yes, you are correct. This is the list I wanted to show you. Last time you were here, you weren't alone and we couldn't speak to you about it, but now we can explain everything and help you further." He grabbed in his desk and took out a scroll and unrolled it. It was at least 20 inches long with a lot of writing on it. He handed it over to Harry and began to explain. Apparently, he had six Vaults at level three. The deepest vaults at Gringotts with only Galleons. Two vaults at level two with Sickles. The trust fund vault he visited and two houses in France, one in Germany, the Potter manor, the house at Godric's Hollow (only that one was demolished), and an apartment in London. He was stunned. He knew there was money because he had seen it in his trust vault, but that was not even one percent of everything. He also had a small army of house-elves…

"And then there is your parents will we wanted to discuss with you. In there it is written that you still have a wizard legal guardian, your godfather, but he is in Azkaban at this moment. If you are going to be emancipated you can help him get out. You see - He was captured because the Aurors thought he betrayed your parents to the Dark Lord and killed one of your parent's best friends but because he was not the secret keeper according to your parent's will. He could not have. He went to Azkaban without trial and nobody would listen to us because we are goblins." The last bit, he grumbled. 

Harry was shocked even more. He had a godfather? Who was in prison without any reason? Harry became furious. He could have left the Dursleys. He would not have needed to live with them at all! Harry took a couple of deep breaths, and Hermione scooted closer to him and put an arm around his shoulders. "I could - I could have had a normal childhood? I could have known I was a wizard? I would not have been abused? How could this have happened?" He asked, disappointed. "Well, Headmaster Dumbledore knew, of course. He was present when the secret keeper was chosen and knew about the will, but he didn't respond to our letters and did nothing to prevent to keep mister Black out of Azkaban." Ricbert told them. Hermione gasped at that. "Do you mean Sirius Black? The wizard who escaped a couple of weeks ago?" They had read those papers, and the man on the picture seemed crazy and dark. Harry gulped. How would he save someone who seemed guilty to the whole wizard world and who broke out of prison? 

He set his mind to it. He was going to help Sirius Black and get emancipated. He could go live in one of the houses he owned. And maybe if Sirius was cleared, they could live together. If he wasn't crazy, of course, "Yes, that is correct. He escaped Azkaban. But he has spent twelve years there. So if he is cleared of the first charges, they can't send him back, Sirius was a very talented wizard and very smart. Sirius would not have been caught if he did not have wanted to." Ricbert said. "You can send him an owl to explain what you are going to do and maybe meet with him to talk before he is cleared of the charges. An owl can find everyone, and I heard you have a very smart one." Harry smiled at that. "What do I need to do, sir?" He asked. Ricbert smirked, "You need to sign the following documents to be emancipated. Whatever Dumbledore tries, he can't send you back. You are then full owner of al your finances and holdings. You will get new keys to your vaults. You even can start commanding your house-elves. They probably are bored out of their minds doing nothing for or so long. You can go live in one of the houses you own. You only need a lot of help with being lord of the house of Potter. If mister Black is cleared, he can help you, and maybe you can find someone to tutor you for lordship. You will get all the help you need from us, of course. And last but not least, you will get your family ring." He held five scrolls, each at least 20 inches, to be signed and held a ring embedded with small red rubies and a P stamped on the silver ring. Harry and Hermione started reading through the scrolls and asked questions. Well, Hermione asked a lot of questions, but Harry was glad about that. 

When they were through the scrolls, Harry signed the first four. When he put his last signature down, there was a warm whirlwind around him that felt pleasant. He smiled and gave the scrolls back to Ricbert. He took the ring from his outstretched hand and put it on his right ring finger. The ring fitted exactly around his finger. "What's next?" He asked enthusiastically. "Now you need to write to Mister Black and to the department of magical law enforcement. Madam Bones is in charge. You can write directly to her. She needs to listen to the Lord of Potter house." Ricbert said with a smirk on his face. "Even if Lord Potter is just thirteen years old," Harry also smirked and asked for scrolls and a quill. 

When they were back at the Leaky Cauldron, they went to Harry's room to review this change of events and to send the scrolls as soon as possible. Hedwig was waiting in the room, and Harry gave her some food and sent her away. "Hey beauty, can you find my godfather for me? Peck him until he writes back. I really need an answer. But first, deliver this one to Madam Bones at the DMLE. She needs to clear him from all charges and with this, it would be possible." Harry said to the white snow owl. She pecked him affectionately on the finger, took the scrolls and went out of the window. "Harry, you are emancipated now! You are the noble Lord of Potter house. It is incredible what you can do now. You may even use magic outside of Hogwarts now! Because you are now clear of the trace." Hermione beamed at Harry. 

"I know! It's amazing! I am disappointed I didn't know this sooner. Sirius has been innocent for twelve years, and Dumbledore knew this. When we are going to see him tomorrow, he will hear about it." Harry grumbled. His Headmaster had some explaining to do and some groveling if Harry could help it. "Let's go down to the Alley, and get some ice cream and go find some books. We still need to go shopping, and if you are away on holiday next week, you don't have the time." Harry said. So they went down to get ice cream at the Alley.


	5. Chapter 5

Draco strutted through Diagon Alley. He was finally alone. His father was too busy to come with him, and his mother was planning a party and couldn't be bothered. He wanted to buy the newest book about dragons, but he should not 'waste' his money on this kind of books, according to his father. He just went to buy all the needed stuff for his third year. He was almost finished when he heard a snarl behind him. "Malfoy! What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?!" Draco turned around to see a very red in the face redhead with clenched fists. He knew Weasel would probably blow a fuse if teased. But he didn't care. He didn't do anything wrong. 

"What is it, Weasel? Jealous because I actually can afford to buy my school books? Or just jealous because I don't have to dress in hand me downs?" Draco said with his Malfoy trademark smirk. Ron was about to pop a vein on his forehead. The way he looked now, most people would just describe it as murderous. "Shut up, arsehole! At least my family cares enough to go shopping with me. I can see you are by yourself." Ron snarled.  _ Ouch, that was nasty, even coming from Weasel.  _ Draco thought. His face fell and he did not want to go on further with Weasel. "Just go away, Weasel. Probably best for everyone." Draco said. But Ron didn't move back. He took a step towards Draco. "You will pay for all the nasty things you or your father said the last couple of years." He snarled at Draco and took another step. Draco swallowed and knew he needed to get away. He could not hex him because of the trace, and looking back, he saw he was cornered in the alley and could not get away through there. 

Ron pulled his fist back and hit Draco across the jaw. Draco's head snapped back and he hit the back of his head against the wall of the alley. For a moment, he only saw black. He tried to regain focus but was hit in the stomach and doubled over gasping for breath. He heard shouting at the entrance of the alley but paid it no mind. He just tried to stand up but again was forced down because of another fist slamming against his face. He probably broke his nose now. He could feel the blood streaming from his nose and some from his mouth. When he looked up, he saw that Ron was being pulled away by a black-haired boy and a girl with a lot of bussy hair. Ron tried to break free of the hold they had on him and he yelled at them for being traitors. Harry had enough and got his wand out and pointed it at Ron's chest. 

"Ron. Take. A. Fucking. Step. Back." Harry sneered at Ron. "You bloody traitor! You know what his father did to Ginny! Why are you standing up for him! You are my best friend! And you can't use magic outside of Hogwarts, arsehole!" Ron shouted back at Harry. "He is not his father, and if you had been a friend, you would know I am emancipated now and can do any-fucking-thing I want! Did you even read my letters? My pleas for help? I was beaten to a pulp by my family and you couldn't even respond. Only boasting about your summer trip to fucking Egypt!" Harry shouted back. Draco was shaking and shocked at the revelation.  _ Beaten to a pulp by his family? His best friend did not even know this?  _ Draco even had seen the bruises the last couple of years after the summer break, but he thought Potter was just a wild child. 

Draco stiffened when he felt Granger next to him. "Malfoy, if you want, you can come with us to Three Broomsticks to look after your injuries, are you okay with that?" Granger looked in his eyes and sounded sincere. "Why are you helping me? I have been terrible to you." He asked in a whisper. "I like to give people the benefit of the doubt, and you are hurt." Hermione looked back at Ron with disgust written on her face. Ron looked between Hermione and Harry and snarled. "Well, aren't you three-"with a glare pointed at Draco. "-just perfect for each other. The half-blood- traitor, the mudblood, and the pureblood prejudice. Bloody hell, couple of gits, aren't you?" He growled at the three of them. When he tried to turn, Harry pulled him back with his sleeve and lashed out with his right hand were a very large ring was suited and struck Ron in the face. Ron went down in an instant. 

They just stood there for a moment looking at Ron. Harry and Hermione were looking at their former best friend. "Well, that was a nice right hook, Potter. I think we should go before we are discovered." Draco said. He was looking at the green-eyed boy with a smile on his face. Harry looked at Draco and smiled, also with a faint blush on his cheeks. "Yes. Well- We really should go. Come with us. We can check your injuries." He walked out of the alley with Hermione and Draco. When they reached the room Harry was staying; Harry asked Hermione for healing spells. He did not know them yet but was the only one who could perform magic outside of Hogwarts. When he healed Draco's nose, there was a sharp snap, and a groan escaped from Draco. "Sorry. I hope it didn't hurt." Harry said. 

"No, it didn't. It feels better now. I - I just can't believe you helped me with Weasel." Draco said. He looked at Harry and Hermione. "Th-Thank you for that. I know I have been terrible to you and especially to you, Granger. It's - It's just - my father -" He swallowed. _Should I tell them?_ _Can I trust them?_ He thought. _Fuck it._ "It's my father. He preaches pureblood bull and expects me to live up to it. I really don't want to, but - I am afraid of what will happen to me if I don't do as he asks." He told them truthfully.

Harry and Hermione exchanged a look. "So you don't think I am a mudblood?" Hermione asked. "Well, you are a muggle-born, but I hate the word mudblood," Draco said and shook himself against a shiver. "I am just waiting before I can get emancipated, so I don't have to go back. That horrible man will probably disown me, but I don't care. I just want to be free." Draco said and turned to Harry. "Potter, how can you be emancipated? Normally you need to be fifteen. That's why I am not." Draco asked curiously. "Well, I went to Gringotts and they told me that I could be emancipated if there was probable cause, and there was in my case because of the negligence of my parent's will and the abuse of my 'family' who supposed to be my guardians," Harry told Draco. If _ he is going to be honest with us. I can do the same thing, and he looks sorry.  _ Harry thought. 

"Fuck, I am sorry to hear that you were abused. I saw bruises on you in first year when we run into each other at madam Malkins, but I really thought you were just playing outside or something like that and I am truly sorry for everything I put you guys through. I really was a git." Draco admitted shamefully. Harry looked shocked, stood up, and reached out his hand. "Hi, I am Harry Potter - and you are?" He smiled and looked at Draco. Draco let out a laugh and took Harry's hand. "Hi, I am Draco Malfoy, maybe we could be friends?" Draco said and asked cautiously. "I think we can manage that," Harry said with a smirk on his face. "Really boys!" Hermione said with an eye roll before beginning to laugh.


	6. Chapter 6

Harry, Draco and Hermione stayed and talked in Harry's room until Harry needed to meet Dumbledore. He explained to Draco why he was wary about it and didn't want to go. "My father was right about one thing, and that is that that old goat should not be trusted. What are you going to do? Because now you are free of your guardians and the Lord of house Potter, he can't do anything, but he will try something. You really shouldn't go alone. Do you know if it's a private meeting? Or are you going to sit in the pub downstairs?" Draco said. "Because if it's private.. maybe we can make it private to request a room now, and when Dumbledore is coming the bartender can let him up to the room we are meeting in. Then Granger and I can help you. I was raised to be the next Lord Malfoy. So I know a few things. And Granger here is a walking library." Draco looked enthusiastic between Harry and Hermione. Hermione thought about it and ran downstairs to book a conference room. Harry explained the plan they already had in place for Dumbledore to Draco. Draco smirked and couldn't wait for the old goat to get what he deserved. 

Headmaster Dumbledore arrived at the Leaky Cauldron and expected to see the black-haired boy cowering in a corner, but that wasn't the case. He walked to the bartender. "Where is Harry Potter?" Dumbledore asked. "He is in room 42. He is waiting with his associates. Tea has just arrived and they are waiting for you." The bartender replied with a little smirk. Dumbledore was troubled, but he tried not to show it. "Associates? Well. Let's go find out." He said and walked with the bartender to the room in question. Dumbledore knocked at room 42 and walked in. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Harry Potter, sipping tea with Draco Malfoy.  _ How on earth did this happen?  _ He was shaken from his thoughts by Hermione Granger. "Headmaster Dumbledore. How nice of you to meet us here." Hermione said sweetly. "Would you like some tea?" She batted her eyelashes. Harry and Draco were holding back laughter. Draco cleared his throat. "Please Headmaster, sit down and tell us how we can help you today." Draco gave Dumbledore a cup of tea and sat down again. He was looking like a cat that licked the cream. 

"Well,- you see,- What is happening here?" The last sentence was ending in almost a shout from Dumbledore. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves.  _ They are playing with you. Nothing is wrong. Harry just needs to go back to those rotten Dursleys and be a nice little, scared boy who will listen to me.  _ Dumbledore thought. "What I mean is, how come young miss. Granger and mister Malfoy are also attending this meeting. I did not know they would be here." He said.  _ Yes a nice little save.  _ Harry cleared his throat. "Well, you see Headmaster, Hermione and Draco are my advisors. Hermione helped me escape from that god-awful place you send me every year, and Draco is helping me understand everything required for a Lord of the house of Potter. You see -" At that, he held up his right hand with the Potter ring clearly visible. "- I am emancipated, and what I heard from Gringotts really troubles me. Like my godfather send to prison when he is innocent."

"Well, that's not -" Dumbledore began but was interrupted by Harry. "Theft from my vaults." Dumbledore swallowed. "Now, tha-" "Concealing the fact that I was abused and starved from responsible adults." Dumbledore looked smaller and smaller every passing minute. "And just hold back the fact that I am one of the richest people in Britain with all the money from the vaults I also have and was never told about, but you knew about them, didn't you? Because all the money that went missing from the vaults -" Dumbledore looked around for an escape route. "- was transferred into yours. Care to explain?" Harry finished, his eyes spitting fire, but his tone was still calm. At that moment, an owl landed outside the window, and Hermione went to get it. "Harry, you have a response from Madam Bones. Ah, she has started the procedure to claim Sirius's innocence and will be here in 3..2...1..-" There was a knocking sound at the door. 

Draco went to open it. "Madam Bones? Yes come in. We were just having a nice little chat with Headmaster Dumbledore. Have you received the owl from Gringotts also with all the evidence? "He asked with a Malfoy smirk. The woman who entered with two Aurors flanking her looked livid and straight at Dumbledore. "Headmaster Dumbledore. We are here to arrest you and take you to a holding cell at the Ministry of Magic to await trial of theft, fraud, and conspiracy against Sirius Black. Take him into custody," Madam Bones said. 

Dumbledore went rigid and thought about an escape, but before he could raise his wand, there was a voice shouting "EXPELLIARMUS," and his wand flew to the outstretched hand of Harry James Potter. Who was looking very smug about that action. "Harry- my boy- what are you doing? This is madness; I am the Chief warlock of the Wizengamot, The Supreme Mugwump. I am your Headmaster!" He bellowed. Harry looked down his nose at Dumbledore, which was quite a view because he was much shorter." You are also an authority figure who abused his place. You could have gotten Sirius free. You could have saved me from my abusive family, you could not have stolen from my vaults, but you chose to look the other way. Because you think that was the right thing to do, but now you have to deal with the consequences." Harry said calmly. 

Harry turned to Madam Bones and the Aurors. The Aurors immediately grabbed Dumbledore and restrained him with the help of magic. "Madam Bones, Thank you for coming to our aid as soon as possible." "Lord Potter, the pleasure is all mine. The Ministry and the newspapers have been informed, and Sirius Black will be a free man tomorrow. I assume you already have contacted him about it? Because he still needs to explain what precisely happened twelve years ago." Madam Bones said to Harry. "Yes, I have written to him and I expect an answer as soon as possible." Harry made a little bow to Madam Bones, and she looked amused. Draco also made a bow, and Hermione crossed her ankles and dipped. "We were going to have another round of tea, can we offer you some?" Draco asked Madam Bones. She chuckled and dipped her head. "No, thank you for the offer but I am going with the Aurors to book Dumbledore so he will not make a scene." 

Dumbledore was still resisting the bonds that held him. "YOU ARE MAKING A MISTAKE! A MISTAKE! ONLY WITH ME, YOU CAN DEFEAT HIM! VOLDEMORT WILL RISE AGAIN, AND IT WILL BE YOUR FAULT!" Dumbledore yelled. Harry went rigid and white, Draco stepped in. "We will deal with him when the time comes, but you will not, I repeat, not threaten Harry with this burden. He is just a child! The one responsible for the defeat of the Dark Lord should be an adult, but Harry already has shown more bravery in his pinky toe than you in your whole body and life. So leave him alone!" Draco yelled. Harry looked at Draco, and he saw the grateful smile spreading across his face. "Could you please remove Dumbledore? He is making me and my friends very uncomfortable." Hermione sniffed. Looking like she might cry but holding it back. "Yes, we shall leave now." Madam Bones said she murmured 'Silencio' and Dumbledore was quiet and looked like he was trying to scream how an old man who always looked like he earned respect could fall so quickly. It was eerie. The Aurors and Madam Bones left the room after a quick goodbye. 

As soon as the door closed, Hermione flew across the room to hug Harry. When she let go of him, she tackled Draco, who did not see that coming, and they fell to the ground. Hermione, on top of Draco, they looked at each other and turned both red in the face. Harry started to laugh and helped Hermione to stand and offered a hand to Draco. When Draco stood, Harry pulled him also in a hug. Draco felt his heart flutter with both hugs from Harry and Hermione. "Well - that went better than expected," Hermione said when the boys let each other go. "I really would like some ice cream to celebrate," Harry said, and Draco smiled a little. "Okay let's get some. Afterward, I really need to finish my shopping and go home." Draco sounded disappointed that he needed to go back after this eventful day. "Oh! We need to go shopping too. I really want that new book of Dragons, and we also need all the spellbooks for next year." Hermione exclaimed. 

Draco looked enthusiastic. "I also want to buy that new book about Dragons, but my dad isn't going to let me. He thinks it's a waste." Draco rolled his eyes and sagged a little a whole lot less enthusiastic than mere seconds ago. "Bugger, now I have two book smart friends." Harry said to break the tension. He saw the pain written on Draco's face and did not like it. "Draco, can you come back tomorrow? Then we can hang out the whole day. Hermione needs to finish her shopping because she is going on holiday. So from Monday until the first of September, I am going to be alone here. I could use a little company if you would like to?" Harry said. Draco looked at Harry, and he looked relieved. Again a smile was forming on his lips. "I really would like that. This weekend I can't come because of a party at Malfoy Manor, but on weekdays my father is too busy to notice me. So as long he doesn't find out who I am with, it should be fine!" Harry and Hermione looked at each other and knew that his father wouldn't approve of them, but it was nice to see that that wouldn't stop Draco from seeing them. They already could feel that this was a special bond between the three of them. "Okay so let's go for ice cream and shopping now and talk about meeting tomorrow," Harry said, and they walked out of the door. 

The next day they met at Flourish & Blotts for more books for school and 'fun' books for Hermione and Draco and a couple about Quidditch for Harry. When they went back to Harry's room in The Leaky Cauldron, Hedwig was waiting with a scroll. It was from Sirius. This morning the Daily Prophet already told the story about Albus Dumbledore and his downfall and the innocence of Sirius Black. There were many whispers in Diagon Alley about both subjects, but Harry, Draco, and Hermione paid no mind. They knew what really happened with Dumbledore and would soon also know everything from Sirius Black. Harry took the scroll of Hedwig, and Draco gave her some treats. Harry read aloud. 

_ Dear Harry,  _

_ I can't believe this is happening. I will tell you everything that happened on that terrible night, and I can't thank you enough for what you have done for me. I am a little shocked that you are already emancipated, but it is probably for the best. Please tell me everything as soon as we can meet. Of course, I will make a statement at the Ministry, but first, I want to see the pup of my best mate. I also contacted Remus Lupin. He was also a good friend of your father and mother. At this moment, I am not looking well and still in robes of an escaped criminal. I am going to Remus Lupin on Thursday morning and would like to meet you on Friday morning so we can officially meet as Godfather and Godson than we can talk about everything. Remus will collect you at The Leaky Cauldron at 10 a.m. to bring you to his house so we can see each other. At this moment, it probably is best not to be seen in public. Not before I give my testimony. I really want to see you pup.. See you Friday! _

_ Sirus  _

"That is tomorrow! Tomorrow is Friday!" Harry could not contain his glee, Draco and Hermione both beamed at him. From the contents of the letter, it didn't seem that Sirius Black was crazy, which was a relief for everyone. "Do you want to go alone to them?" Draco asked Hermione said immediately, "I really don't think you should go alone. Please take us with you." She pleaded. "If you both want to-"Hermione nodded furiously. Draco didn't seem sure but also nodded. "-then you can come both." Harry said. "I don't know them, so it would be nice to have somebody with me. Draco, you didn't seem sure, what's wrong?" Even if they were just becoming friends, they still knew each other the past years, and Harry already had the feeling that he could read Draco's expressions like an open book if he hadn't had his mask in place to be the perfect little heir. Draco looked uncomfortable. "Well, Sirius is my mother's cousin. So he is family. I don't know how he will react to me, and I don't want to be a bother, but if you want me to come, I will be there for you." Draco said carefully. "That should not be a problem. You are my friend, and I want you with me." Harry said with determination. Draco felt his chest and heart swell. Hermione punched him soft on his arm and said. "Draco, you are one of us now. It doesn't matter. We will look out for you and expect the same of you." Draco smirked. "So, it's more like a full-time job with all the trouble you two attract?" Harry and Hermione started to protest, but Draco just laughed. Hermione punched him again at his arm but started to laugh also. 

They had lunch and read and played wizard chess. "At last, somebody I can win from!" Harry said with joy. Draco scoffed. "What's that supposed to mean? I play perfectly well." He said—Hermione snickered from behind her book. "Well,-" she began in her swotty voice "- Ron is really good. Probably the only thing he's good at, and I don't like to play. So Harry thinks he finally has a winning chance. And you know how competitive he is with Quidditch." She finished with an eye roll. Draco couldn't contain his curiosity. "Why did you two break with Weasel? You were best buddies before the break. Or so it seemed for everyone. Not that I am not grateful for the save last time we saw him, but-" Harry stiffened a little, but Hermione was the one who answered. "Well, you heard what he said when we stood up for you, but there were other things. Harry told me-" She paused and looked troubled and glanced at Harry. Who had cramped up and had a scowl on his face. 

"He tried to take advantage of Hermione when the basilisk petrified her. So when I punched him. It was not only because he punched you. It was also retribution for Hermione. The arsehole had it coming but played nice the last couple of weeks of school, and I was in the hospital wing-" Draco's jaw dropped to the floor. "HE DID WHAT!?" He screamed and turned to Hermione. "Are you okay? If you want I am going to hex him every day for the rest of his miserable life and he wouldn't even know who did it." If Draco wanted his Slytherin side could be really dangerous, and he would ask Theo to help him to get payback, he would totally help because Theo also had honor and liked to play pranks.

Especially on Weasel. Hermione smiled a little. "No, thank you, Harry already punched him, and I can hex him just fine myself without being caught." She said with a smirk.  _ She totally could have been in Slytherin if she wasn't a muggle-born.  _ Draco thought. Harry looked at Draco and had a smirk on his face.  _ Definitely a Slytherin trademark smirk over there and Salazar those eyes.  _ Draco shook himself. He really shouldn't be thinking that right now. "Okay, but if you need any help-" He looked at Harry, who was nodding very sneaky so Hermione wouldn't notice. "-you can totally ask me," Draco also said with a smirk. 

Draco went home for dinner and promised Harry and Hermione to be back the next morning at nine a.m. for breakfast. He called his elf, and they popped away to Malfoy Manor. Dinner was served, and he sat at the huge table with his mother and father. They were far away, not far enough to shout over the table because that was not done but still far away enough so nobody could touch each other. "So Draco, how was your day?" His mother asked sweetly. Draco first swallowed before he answered. "Good mother. I was at Diagon Alley and went to the bookstore and read some new books." He did not tell them about his company. Because they would never approve of it.  _ Just walk on eggshells for the next couple of years. Just nod and smile.  _ He thought to himself. His life was already changing, and he still could not believe he was friends with Potter and Granger. He did call them Harry and Hermione now because they asked. But he was still getting used to that. An elf popped in and whispered something to Lucius. He stood and excused himself from the table. Draco watched him go with an unsettling feeling in his stomach. 

"What do you mean with he's gone? Dumbledore should be in holding in the Ministry. I don't know what he has done, but if he's gone, that means the Dark Lord can come back without any trouble from the old goat." Lucius yelled to the head in the fire. Theodore Nott Senior flinched a little. "He escaped his holding cell. Madam Bones is furious. She brought him in with two Aurors. According to the intel we got, Harry Potter was the one who turned him in." Nott said. "But that's not what you should be worrying about." He told Lucius. "According to the intel-" Nott Senior paused for effect. "-Potter had company to turn Dumbledore in. A certain Miss Granger, who's a mudblood. And a blond young wizard- with the name Draco Malfoy." Nott senior smirked at that. He knew what this intel could do to Lucius's reputation, but he didn't care. Lucius was a horrible man. The growl that escaped Lucius could be heard through the manor, and Draco flinched at the sound. "DRACO!" his father bellowed from the floo room. Draco panicked. He looked at his mother and knew he needed to go away, not sure if he could return. "Mom. I'm sorry. I-" Narcissa Malfoy looked at her only son with fear written on her face and screamed. "GO NOW! TAKE ONE OF THE ELVES AND RUN!" Draco didn't wait and called his elf. "Take me to Harry!" He screamed just as Lucius threw the door open and pointed his wand with a hex at Draco. He ducked, and the hex just missed, but Lucius was already aiming another one. The elf squeaked and took Draco's hand, and they popped away only to hear Lucius's scream of frustration.


	7. Chapter 7

Harry and Hermione just came back from dinner downstairs and talked about one of the books Hermione got today. "Harry, it is really amazing, did you know that-" They were interrupted by a loud pop and a stumble of an elf and Draco. Draco fell to the floor, sobbing and clutching his left arm. He was bleeding, and a couple of blisters were sprouting on his left hand. "Father - he - he found out - He found out that..-" Hermione was already on her knees next to Draco and was unbuttoning his shirt to get a look of his arm. Draco flinched because the shirt was pulling at the wounds and blisters he had on his arm. "Fuck, Hermione!" Draco sneered. "Sorry! Harry go to my room and get the book with the healings spells. It's on my dresser!" Harry ran out of the door and was back in an instant with three books. "I did not know which one, but I have brought the ones I think have healing spells? Do you know where we need to look?" Harry was in a panic and gave the books harshly to Hermione and took Draco's hand in his. He looked in Draco's grey eyes and just began murmuring. "It's going to be okay. We are going to take care of you. Draco stay awake. Hermione will find a spell, and I will do it as best as I can. If it doesn't help enough, we are going to St. Mungo's." Harry was drawing his thumb over Draco's knuckles to reassure him and still looked in his eyes. Hermione had found the spell. Harry told the elf he should go back to stay out of trouble and that they were going to take care of Draco from now on. The elf threw a troubled look at Draco. "Sorry master." He said, and popped away. 

Harry read the spell three times and murmured it until Hermione was satisfied. Harry performed the spell, and the blisters went away. The redness was a lot less. They helped Draco up and to the bathroom to wash his arm. Hermione stayed outside and went to get something to eat and drink. Harry got a washcloth and turned on the warm tap. He took Draco's hand again and put the cloth carefully on his arm. Draco flinched but said nothing. He looked at the floor, and his hair was falling in his eyes. There were tear stains on his cheeks, but Harry couldn't care less. Harry was never good with emotions, but he did not think it as odd that Draco was distressed or showing his vulnerability. He just knew Draco needed them now because it wasn't going to be easy for him. 

"Draco?" Harry said. "Does it still hurt? Because maybe we still need to go to St. Mungo's to let them check on you." Draco just shook his head and looked up at Harry. "I - I don't know where I am going to go. I have nothing now. My father will disown me before the morning and -" Harry interrupted him. "You can stay with me! According to Ricbert of Gringotts, I also have a Potter manor or something, and I really don't know shit about Lordship. So I really could use all the help I can get, and you can stay with me and -" Draco chuckled a little. "- I know you are not a charity case but as I said, I really need help with everything so you can be like my advisor with everything and stay with me, and we will get you new stuff for school -" Draco put his free hand over Harry's mouth. "Okay Potter, please stop talking because you are rambling like Hermione." He took his hand away, and Harry started talking again. "Sorry. I just really want to help you. You stood up for me yesterday, and you would do the same if that were possible. You can take Hermione's room this weekend because her mother is going to pick her up sooner so they can pack for holiday and tonight and tomorrow I can sleep on the couch, or we can check if they have a spare room, but it seems pretty full downstairs-" 

Draco again put his hand over Harry's mouth. "Really, you are worse than Hermione," Draco said, smiling. "I heard that! No tea for you." Hermione said from the doorway and humpfed, but she was smiling, so it wasn't a threat. "Are you okay Draco?" She asked carefully. Draco felt a lot better, and the pain was almost gone. Harry was good at healing spells. "Not yet, but I am going to be." He looked from Harry to Hermione and felt good. Even with the knowledge of what would happen tomorrow or further in the future. "Maybe we should go to Gringotts tomorrow to see if they can help you now with the current situation." Hermione mused. 

Draco yawned, and they got to the bedroom. Were tea was ready with little sandwiches. They sat on the bed and just talked. It was nice just to be. Without the feeling, they needed to talk about what had happened. They just wanted each other company and got that. After two hours, all three teens were yawning, and they got ready for bed. Because Draco had nothing but the clothes he had on when he arrived, he borrowed a quidditch jersey of Harry. Harry laughed way too hard about it because they were Gryffindor colors. Hermione went to her room, and Draco was going to sleep on the couch, but Harry stopped him and said they could easily fit in the large bed. They got in and were asleep five minutes later. 

The next morning they wake up to pounding on the door. Harry woke up, and Draco grumbled. "Five more minutes, mom.." Harry looked up and saw that he had his arm over Draco. He retracted his arm quickly before Draco could notice and reached for his glasses. When they were on, he went to the door and threw it open to see Hermione staring at him. "Sorry to wake you, but we have half an hour before Remus Lupin is downstairs, so it would be great if you got dressed." Her cheeks were pink; Harry saw that she was looking down. When Harry followed her gaze, he saw that he wasn't wearing any pants and turned scarlet. "Uhm yeah. We will be right there." He closed the door fast. He heard Draco was holding his laughter. "You are awake you git!" Harry called to him. He grabbed a pillow and threw it at Draco's face, who was now roaring with laughter. "You-should-have seen-your-face-and she-it-was-hilarious." Draco said between laughter and between taking breaths. Harry just grumbled and got to the bathroom to take a quick shower. 

Draco still lay in bed and smelled the jersey of Potter. He slept really well last night and could have sworn that an arm was draped over him when he woke up. When Harry was ready, he quickly put a refreshment spell on Draco's clothes so Draco could shower and dress. When they went down, Hermione was waiting with a cup of tea and talking to a wizard with robes that looked torn and a little dirty. His face was full of scars, and the look in his eyes was tired but friendly; when he saw Harry approach, the wizard's face lit up. 

"Good morning boys! This is Remus Lupin. He would be our Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher before Dumbledore got fired." Hermione said to them when they both were at the table. They poured some tea and ordered some breakfast, also offering Lupin some. The wizard started talking. "Let me officially introduce myself. I am Remus Lupin. I was a good friend of your father and mother when we were at school, and after, as Miss Granger said, I would be teaching at Hogwarts this year but I retracted the offer because of the scandal of Dumbledore. I will explain later why, when we are not in a full pub." Lupin said, looking a little sullen and still staring at Harry. 

"Well you know who I am probably?-"Harry said with a small smirk. He knew how much he looked like his father after all; everybody told him that. "You already met my best friend, Hermione Granger. Well, this is Draco Malfoy. Also, a friend of mine-"Harry saw Lupin pale a bit at the name Malfoy. "My advisor and I took him in as a stray." Harry finished earning a poke in his ribs from Draco. "A stray? Honestly, Potter-"Lupin smiled a little at the exchange and visually relaxed. Hermione smiled and rolled her eyes. "Well, yes, I already knew who you were the moment I saw you. Nice to meet you, mister Malfoy." He dipped his head at Malfoy. "If you are finished with breakfast, we should go, my own 'stray' is jumping up and down because he can't wait to see you," Lupin said with a smirk. Harry and Draco finished eating and headed to the floo. "Just throw it in and say 'Lupin Residence.' Miss Granger, please go first than Harry, and then mister Malfoy followed quickly by me." Lupin said and gave them all some powder. 

When they landed in the living room of Lupin Residence, they saw a small room with tattered furniture and a little dust. When they all got through, the door on the other side of the room burst open, and on the threshold stood a man with clothes that did not fit him right and a hollow face that was once handsome and could be again when he had eaten enough. His long black hair was tight back in a ponytail, and he had a scruffy looking beard. For a moment, everybody just stood there and stared, staring at the man on the other side of the room. The man was only staring at Harry. Draco scraped his throat and pushed Harry a little to Sirius Black and whispered. "You should say something. As I am only your stray." Harry rolled his eyes at him and saw that Sirius's eyes had shifted to Draco with an unreadable expression. "Well hi?" Harry seemed to ask. "I am Harry, and these are my friends Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy." He looked at Sirius, hoping he wouldn't trigger at Malfoy's name. "I assume you are Sirius Black?" Sirius looked back at Harry, and his face softened. "Yes I am. I can't believe I finally get to see you, pup." Sirius said a little soft as if he hadn't talked for a long time. 

When they all got seated, and Lupin got tea Harry started talking about his childhood and the last couple of years at Hogwarts. He even told them about the stuff Draco did and how they just had gotten friends. Sirius looked like he could commit murder but kept quiet. When Harry told them about Gringotts and how they found out Sirius was innocent, he put a hand over his mouth, and his eyes became damp. "Dumbledore knew all along about my innocence. He knew I did not deserve to be there even if I also thought that." Sirius said. Harry looked at Sirius and said. "But you did not betray my parents. Pettigrew did." 

"I know, but I should have been the secret keeper, but I convinced your parents to take Peter. Because of-of my family. You see, the Blacks have always been on the side of Voldemort. Even my younger brother. I would have never betrayed your father, but-" Sirius said and let the words hang between them. "-but it feels like I did." He finished after a long pause. Harry swallowed heavily. He could understand what Sirius was feeling. "You did not betray them. Unfortunately, Pettigrew is dead othe-"Harry started but was interrupted by a literal growl from Sirius. 

"He isn't dead! The rat got away and blew up the entire block with him." Sirius sneered. Harry, Hermione, and Draco looked shocked. "How do you know this?" Hermione asked carefully. Sirius sprang up from the chair he was seated in and got to the room he came out when they arrived—startling the trio a little. Lupin, who was very quiet during the whole conversation, looked livid. "Here!" Sirius said. He threw an old newspaper at the table in front of them. On it was the family Weasley with Ron and his rat. "Sorry, sir but I don't understand," Draco said, and Hermione and Harry nodded at the question because they were at a loss.

"Sirius, maybe you should tell them your story," Lupin said calmly. Sirius told them about school, and how they became animagus and how he went after Pettigrew that terrible night because he betrayed James and Lily but got away, then he told them about how he escaped Azkaban after he saw the paper because he knew it was Pettigrew. Hermione exclaimed that she had a fight with Ron about the rat because it really shouldn't have lived so long as it did. "So there it is pup. I recognized Peter in the paper and knew he was going to Hogwarts and couldn't let him near you." Sirius said. 

Harry stared at the newspaper, and the sides began to smoke. Lupin grabbed the paper of the table and threw it in the sink before it burned to ashes. "Harry, are you okay?" Hermione asked she put her hand on Harry's arm. "No, I am not. He slept at my room for two years in the same dorm for Godric's sake." Harry snapped. "Harry, you will get justice for your parents. When Sirius has given his statement, they can go arrest Pettigrew." Draco told him. Harry relaxed a little and nodded at that. Sirius looked at Draco and nodded also. "Well, let's get something to eat because it's noon already, and I am famished, then you three can tell us why Lucius Malfoy's son is also here," Sirius said seriously, still looking at Draco. Draco gulped but nodded.

They got some lunch, and then it was Draco's turn to tell his story. He told them about his father and how he never agreed with him but kept his head down so he wouldn't get hurt and out of fear. He told them about the mental abuse and about the punishments and how he never was good enough. Hermione was at the brink of tears; Harry gripped Draco's shoulder. Draco looked at the floor when he told everything because he knew he would break when he saw their faces. Finally, he told them about the night before and how he ran from his childhood home with nothing and would probably be disowned before the end of the day. 

Not that he cared about the money but more the fact that he had nothing for himself now. "So Harry healed me with Hermione's help and asked me to be his advisor for Lordship because I don't want to be a charity case and because I grew up to be trained as the next Lord Malfoy, so hopefully he will do as I say so he will not make a fool out of himself." He finished with a small smile. He finally looked up and looked at Sirius, who had a sympathetic look on his face. "Draco, if you're okay with it, I would like to check your arm, I believe Harry and Hermione did a great job, but maybe it is smart to have another look," Lupin said. Draco pulled his shirt off and let Lupin look. "It seems fine. It could be tender for the next couple of days, but Harry did a wonderful job." Remus said and Harry beamed at him. 

"Well, you are in luck Draco,-"Sirius started. "- because you're also Narcissa's son. I can see that and I always liked Cissy when we were young. I already hated your father when we were at school and after this story, it really doubles the hatred because you are also part Black. You can take that name if you wish. You could be Draco Black, you would not be homeless or broke anymore because you will be the official heir of Black's ancient and noble house. You only have to share it with me." Sirius said with a grin on his face. 

  
Draco was stunned.  _ Did he just offer me an escape?  _ "Are you serious?" Draco asked, and Sirius got a huge grin on his face, and there was no mistake in how handsome he truly was. "Well, yes, I am Sirius," Sirius said with a smirk and started to laugh. After being stunned for a second, Harry, Hermione, and Draco also began to laugh with mirth. Lupin shakes his head and just grumbled, "I could go another twelve years without that joke."


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little adult content in this one!

They got back to the Leaky Cauldron at three o'clock. Sirius and Remus were going to the Ministry for the official statement and to be sure Peter would be caught as soon as possible. Harry, Hermione, and Draco were going to Gringotts for Draco's name change. They first went to their rooms to freshen up. When they got to Harry's room, there was a red envelope waiting. "Fuck." Draco hissed. The howler only got to be from his father. "You really should open it.. before it explodes", Harry said. Draco scowled at him but took the envelope. It started right after he opened it.

**Draco Lucius Malfoy. How dare you undermine me and bring shame to our name and house! You are a disgrace for the name you may no longer bear. The Dark Lord shall rise again, and your precious 'mate' shall be put down as he deserves. You are no longer my son. You are from now on, nameless, and disowned from the Malfoy family.**

The letter combusted at that, and ashes flew down to the ground. Harry and Draco stood still and waited a couple of moments. "Well, that was to be expected." Draco drawled. It sounded like he did not care but his demeanor was rigid, and he was shaking a little. Harry grabbed his shoulder and squeezed. "Hey, we already have a solution for the namesake, and you can stay with me as long as you want. In a couple of weeks, we are going back to school, and everything will be okay in the end." Harry said, not entirely convinced himself but refused to show that to his new friend. "Yes you are right. Let's get Mione and get to Gringotts. The sooner this is handled, the better." Draco said. He was already adapting the nickname for the bushy-haired girl. 

They went down the hall and knocked at her door. When she was ready, they walked out, and Harry told her about the howler. Hermione scowled at the way Draco's father had responded. Soon they were again at Gringotts and were helped by Ricbert. "So, you want to change your name?" He asked Draco. Draco swallowed hard. "Yes, I want to take my mother's name, Black. I have the right to do so when I please if I am correct. Also, I just have been disowned and thereby nameless." Draco told the goblin, who was not looking pleased. "Yes you are correct.-"the goblin took a scroll out of his desk and unrolled it in front of Draco. "-You are aware that you will be named Draco Lucius Black from now on?" He continued and gave a quill to Draco, and he nodded. "Yes I am aware. Do I need to do something besides signing this document?" Draco asked. He was shaking a little, how much he despised his father; it was still his father and his birth name he would forsake.  _ Not that I can use it anymore now anyway.  _ He thought darkly.

Hermione put a hand on his arm, and he looked in her steady brown eyes and put his hand over hers. It was comforting to have her and Harry with him for this how the table can turn in just a few days. "No, you don't have to do anything else. When the document is signed, you should feel the magic happen, and all the documents with your name on it will change at the Ministry and Hogwarts. You will be the new heir of the ancient and noble house of Black. It might hurt a little", The goblin said. Draco swallowed against his dry throat and signed the document. He felt a string inside himself snap and doubled over from pain and shock. 

When he gasped for breath, he could feel a new string attach himself inside him. But it felt different. He could not describe it but reached for his wand. When he flicked his wand, it did not work properly, and he tried again. "Your wand will probably not work correctly anymore. Your magical core has changed. You probably felt it just now. You need a new wand that matches your new core." Ricbert said his face impassive. Harry and Hermione, who were silent during the procedure, took a breath of relief. They were startled when Draco doubled over, but he seemed better now. "Well, that's great, another stop at our busy shopping schedule," Draco said with a smirk. 

They went back to the Leaky Cauldron to a thick crowd of people who were screaming and shouting. They heard someone yell, "mister Black! How come you are free?" Another screamed: "Is it true you did not commit the crimes you were convicted of?" Harry and Draco shoved their way to the front, and Hermione followed them. They saw Sirius and Remus standing in front of the Leaky Cauldron. Sirius tried to go in but was being stopped by the people who wanted more information. Sirius saw the three of them coming and gave a smirk and wink to them. He put his wand to his throat and started speaking with a raised voice by the sonorus charm. "I just gave my statement to the Head Auror. She has examined my testimony with veritaserum and concluded I am innocent of all charges. The rest of the facts will be in the paper tomorrow. Now, I just want to have a nice little dinner with my friend, godson, and his friends. Harry, Draco, Hermione, please come inside," He said and turned to the door, followed by the teens and Remus. There were camera flashes, but they just slammed the door shut after them. "Aahh, Tom!" Sirius said to the bartender. "Could you please ensure we have some privacy?" He asked, and the bartender led them to a meeting room and told them they could get dinner there. 

They ate, drank, and laughed and told more stories about themselves. "You did what last year? How can you brew a polyjuice potion? It's freaking hard!" Draco said in awe when he heard the story of the heir of Slytherin from Hermione's point of view. Sirius and Remus also looked very impressed. Hermione just seemed very smug about it. They were enjoying themselves until the first owl arrived. It was for Harry from deputy headmaster McGonagall. Harry read it aloud at the table.

_ Mister Harry James Potter, _

_ When you arrive at Hogwarts, I would like a meeting with you in the headmistress office. After dinner on the first of September. _

_ Yours truly, _

_ Minerva McGonagall _

Harry groaned. He should have seen this coming. He probably needs to explain exactly what happened with Dumbledore. Hermione also got an owl with the same content. The next owl came through, and Harry began to suspect this one was for Draco. The envelope had different writing but was indeed for Draco. Draco took the envelope from the bird and saw it was addressed to Draco Lucius Black.  _ Well, news definitely travels fast..  _ Draco thought. He knew the writing was from Theo. He opened the letter and started reading. Not at loud before first skimming the contents, he knew Theo after all. When he saw what was in the letter, he smiled and started to read it to the rest. 

_ You are truly an incredible arsehole, aren't you? Why the hell did you not tell me you ran away? I heard it from my father, who was laughing his ass off because of it. When we are going to meet, you better explain yourself why you are now called Black. I mean, Black?! Come on! You could have been called Nott; we could have run away in the sunset and got married. But noooo, you needed to go and befriend Potter of all people. You better introduce me to him, because you know I think he's hot. You are probably reading this now to him, aren't you? Git. Meet me Monday at noon in Diagon Alley. You really need to tell me everything.  _

_ Love and kisses Theo _

Draco started to laugh when he saw Harry blushing. Typical of Theo making a joke out of everything, but at least he doesn't seem mad. What was a relief to Draco. Maybe it is going to work out. "Uhh. Is Theo gay?" Harry asked. Draco laughed again. "Most wizards and witches are bisexual, but they just need to produce heirs, that's why there aren't many same-sex marriages. Theo is no exception. He also really likes to make people uncomfortable." Draco explained, still with a fond smile. "How does he think about muggle-borns Draco? Because I would like it if we could stay friends at Hogwarts, but if your best friend doesn't like muggle-borns, it probably would not be smart to be seen with me." Hermione asked with a blush on her cheeks. She really liked Draco, and he and Harry were becoming really good friends. It would break her heart if she couldn't be friends anymore with them. Draco scoffed. "Theo doesn't care about it. Just like me. We only had each other for most of our childhood, and he has had it worse than me because his father is.,-" He stopped for a moment. It wasn't his place to tell what horrors Theo had to endure. "-let's just say, he hates the pureblood prejudice even more than me. He would not stand between us." Draco finished with a smile to Hermione. She released the breath she was holding and felt much calmer. 

When they were finished, Remus and Sirius got back to Lupin's apartment, and Harry, Hermione, and Draco got to bed. The next morning Hermione would be picked up by her mother, and Harry and Draco would go shopping. Sirius and Remus would meet the boys at Gringotts to get a withdrawal from the Black vaults for Draco. Draco and Harry slept again in the same bed. 

When Harry woke up the next morning, he felt that he had an arm around his waist. It was a nice feeling, but when he realized from who it was, he sat bolt upright. Draco groaned and turned around to sleep. Harry really needed to sort out his feelings. First, the dreams of kissing Hermione and now waking up with Draco draped over him. Which was not good for his morning 'problem.' He knew he found Draco hot but was still sorting through his feelings, and the information he got last night about that most wizards were bisexual. Because he was pretty sure he was also bi. Probably a good thing Draco would have another room the next week because this could become embarrassing. 

He carefully got up and tried not to wake Draco and got to the bathroom. He turned on the shower and thought about getting in a cold shower to deal with his morning wood but thought,  _ fuck it.  _

He got into a hot shower and started to stroke himself. First slow and long strokes, he had his eyes closed and was thinking about Hermione and the dreams he had about kissing her. He began to pant a little, and his strokes became more urgent. He thought about Draco and his hands in the blonde hair and kissing his neck. He moaned a little. He was close, "Fuck.." he whispered. Again Hermione swam before his eyes. He almost could feel her hands on his cheeks when she pulled him close to kiss him. His strokes became frantic. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck." He chanted, he thought about Draco and Hermione together. He always had a wild fantasy, he saw Draco pull Hermione close and kissing each other Draco's hand reached out to Harry, and Hermione looked at him with lust in her eyes. Harry couldn't hold it any longer and came with a burst. He finished his shower and went back to the bedroom. 

Draco was still sleeping, and Harry felt hot in his face. Well, at least they did not know what happened. Harry smirked and went to wake up his blonde roommate. He got a glass, filled it with water, and threw it at Draco. Draco was spluttering and turned to Harry. ‘’Arsehole, why the hell did you do that?’’ He said with a scowl. ‘’Well, you need to get up, and this was payback for the laughing of yesterday morning,’’ Harry said with a smirk on his face. Draco groaned and muttered, ‘’Fucking Gryffindors.’’ He flopped down on the bed again en pulled the pillow over his head. Harry started to poke him in the ribs. ‘’Draco, come on, I want to eat before Mrs. Granger is here.’’ He said, still poking at Draco’s ribs. ‘’Fine, but you are not going to wake me up like that ever again because there will be hell to pay,’’ Draco grumbled. 

When they went downstairs, Hermione was already up and half eating, half-reading. ‘’Could she breathe without books, Potter?’’ Draco whispered to Harry. ‘’I don’t know Black, she is almost always reading, but by the looks of it she is already through most of her breakfast so at least she will hear us because the book isn’t interesting enough to stop eating at all,’’ Harry whispered back, emphasizing Draco’s new last name. Draco smirked at Harry. ‘’Morning, Mione. Ready for your holiday?’’ Harry said. Hermione put her book down and looked at the boys. ‘’Good morning Harry, Draco! Yes, I am excited, we are going to Paris, but I am a little sad that I can’t see you until on platform nine and ¾ on September first. My parents want me to stay with them and wave me off.’’ She said with a little pout. Harry thought it was adorable. 

Hermione got her suitcase when her mother was there to pick her up on the muggle side of the Leaky Cauldron, and they said goodbye, Hermione hugged Harry and Draco, and both boys seemed a little flushed at that. At noon Remus and Sirius were in the Alley, and they went to Gringotts. Sirius talked about the Prophet and how they twisted the story, ‘’I sound like a bloody hero, but they don’t even know what truly happened.’’ He whined. Remus slapped him fondly on the arm. They got enough money for new clothes, robes, a wand, school supplies and even a familiar. Draco tried to refuse, but Sirius was having none of it. ‘’You need all the stuff, and you’re a Black now. You have enough money for everything you need. The familiar you can see as a personal gift from me, thank Godric that I don’t have to marry some witch now with you continuing the Black name.-’’ Sirius said with a smirk and a wink thrown at Remus. Who blushed. ‘’- You also have a trust fund so you can buy stuff for yourself when you’re back at Hogwarts.’’ Harry and Draco looked at each other at the exchange between Remus and Sirius, and both smirked. 

They first got to Madam Malkins for new clothes and robes for Draco. He had nothing anymore and Harry because he was growing a lot faster now he was eating well. He looked a lot healthier and more of his age each day. They both got a new wardrobe and new school robes and went to Ollivanders for a new wand. Draco explained the situation and gave his old wand back to Ollivander. Ollivander examined the wand and put it away in a box. He studied Draco Black and said. ‘’Peculiar, peculiar indeed.’’ Ollivander went to the backroom, got three boxes, and went back to the register. ‘’The first wand I am going to show you is a cousin of your mother’s wand.’’ Draco took it and whipped it.

Some sparks flew, but nothing impressive. This wasn’t the right one. ‘’The second is black Oak with a core with hairs from a Grimm. Hardwood so unbendable.’’ Ollivander eyed Sirius, who had gone rigid. Draco didn’t see this exchange, but Harry did. I wonder what that was about. Harry thought. Draco tried the wand, and there was a warm whirlwind around them. ‘’Yes, this is the one,’’ Draco said breathlessly to Ollivander. Ollivander nodded and let them pay for the wand. When they got out of the store, Sirius turned to Draco and pulled his wand. ‘’You’re wand looks a lot like mine. See?’’ The similarities were eerie; it was almost the same wand. ‘’Does-Does that mean something?’’ Draco got out. Harry looked between Draco and Sirius and began talking fast before things got awkward. ‘’I think not. Mine is a brother of Voldemort's wand, and I really don’t want to be like, bound to him.’’ He said with a shudder. Draco and Sirius looked warily but shrugged it off. 

When they got all the school supplies, Harry and Draco were both exhausted. They got back to their hotel, and Draco put his stuff in now Hermione’s old room. Glad he could finally change into something other than the clothes he left the manor with or Harry’s sports jersey. Harry went to take a quick nap before dinner and woke up because Draco threw the door wide open and strutted in. ‘’Come on, Sirius and Remus are waiting in the pub.’’ He said, and they went down. 

‘’Harry, I really think you need new glasses,’’ Remus said for the third time that day. He had seen Harry pinch his eyes when he started to read something, and his glasses weren’t good enough. Harry looked up and flushed. ‘’The last time I got a new prescription, I was like nine. So you are probably right.’’ He said. Sirius growled a little. ‘’Well, that settles it. I really want to hex your family, pup.’’ Sirius grumbled from behind his own menu. ‘’Could I get contacts?’’ Harry asked curiously. He always had hated his glasses, and contacts sounded a lot better. ‘’I don’t see why not, but why wouldn’t you just let them heal your eyes? Until you reach the age of 55, you can get your eyes magically fixed. That’s why most wizards don’t have glasses. Only older people.’’ Sirius said. Harry thought about it, and that seemed the best solution. Why did nobody tell me this? I really still don’t know a lot about all the wizarding stuff. Draco interrupted his thoughts when he elbowed him in his ribs. ‘’Earth to Potter, you really should do that, magically cure your eyes, you could look hot without glasses,” Draco said with a smirk and added. “Think of what Hermione would say.” Harry blushed profoundly and decided he would definitely try the remedy.


	9. Chapter 9

It was early on Sunday morning that Draco woke up screaming. He just had a terrible nightmare about his father torturing his mother. He put his head in his hands and shook a little. He was trying to calm down, but it wouldn’t work. There was a knock on the door, and Harry’s voice drifted inside. ‘’Draco? I heard you scream... Can I come in?’’ Draco went up to the door and opened it. He looked at Harry and still was shaking a little. Harry rushed inside and closed the door. Nobody needed to see the look on Draco’s face. ‘’I just had a nightmare. The last couple of days, I didn’t- but tonight-’’ Draco told Harry. ‘’What was it about? If you want to talk about it, that is. You don’t need to tell me,’’ Harry carefully said. ‘’I don’t want to talk about it right now, but when I’m ready, I will tell you.’’ Draco hoped Harry could understand that. ‘’Of course. I got nightmares myself. I mean, who wouldn’t after facing Voldemort on the back of your teacher’s skull..’’ Harry shivered. 

Draco looked at the clock, it was still really early, and he still felt tired. ‘’Yeah, we should probably try to sleep again,’’ Draco said, Harry looked at the bed and then at Draco. ‘’If you don’t mind, I am going to stay here until we need to get up.’’ Draco felt relief flooding through him. He knew he couldn’t go back to sleep after that nightmare. Harry was a nice distraction. ‘’No, I don’t mind, come on.’’ They climbed in and lay there for a moment until Harry decided to make it awkward. ‘’Do you think it’s weird we sleep in the same bed?’’ Draco thought about it. ‘’No, I don’t think it’s weird. I mean, we sleep in the dorms at Hogwarts with other boys in the same room. Now the two of us just share a bed. That’s not really weird, right?’’ Draco was biting his lip a little. He thought it was nice to share the bed with Harry. He knew Harry had a thing for Hermione, so nothing would happen anyway. You could see that from miles away. ‘’No, it isn’t weird. I think.’’ Harry finally said. Draco blew out the breath he was holding and turned to face Harry. His eyes were already fluttering close. Draco smiled and also closed his eyes.

When they woke up for a second time that day, Harry went to his room to get ready. They went down and got something to eat. An owl swept down and dropped the Prophet, Draco unfolded it, and Harry put a knut in the owl’s bag. Draco did a spit take because he was sipping tea when he looked at the paper. Harry grabbed for the paper, but Draco put it out of his reach to read the rest of the article. ‘’Black! Give it! What’s wrong?’’ Harry said with worry. Draco put the paper down and gave it to Harry. ‘’Well. Apparently, everybody knows about my disownment and name change,-’’ Draco said. Harry grumbled in his tea ‘’It wasn’t really a secret.’’ ‘’-and Dumbledore escaped.’’ Now it was Harry’s turn to spit out his drink. He looked at the paper and read that Dumbledore escaped last Thursday. Why did it only just came in the article today? Harry thought, but he knew they would want to keep that down at the Ministry. “Bollocks! We need to be careful and also need to write Hermione. So she will know.”Harry said. 

He got up and got his quill and a letter. Draco put some input in the message and they send it off with Hedwig. They just got down again when Sirius and Remus walked in the Leaky Cauldron, followed by a lot of flashes and shouting. “Enough! Bugger off! I need to speak to my godson.” Sirius bellowed. A lot of people took a step back. Even if he was proven innocent, he looked like a dangerous criminal at the moment. He even had a leather jacket on and looked like he was a member of a muggle motorcycle gang with the clothes he was wearing. 

“Well, I take it you read the news?” Sirius drawled. “How could he escape? He was in a holding cell, right?” Harry asked. “Yes, he was Harry, but we are talking about Albus Dumbledore. He is a very talented wizard. Even if he is not right in the head.” Remus leveled. Harry knew he was right but really wanted the old goat gone. Harry took another look at the Prophet and saw the article about Draco. 

_ Young last heir of house Malfoy disowned!  _

_ Draco Malfoy was disowned by his father. What Lucius Malfoy was thinking to disown his only heir is not clear. Draco, who has been spotted with the boy who lived, has changed his name to Black! Has this something to do with the escaped and cleared of blame Sirius Black? They have been spotted together in Diagon Alley. Could it be that there is more to the relationship? Is Draco Black the heir who we thought he was, or is there something else? None of the parties involved was available for comment. _

Harry put the paper down and massaged his temples.  _ Bollocks what a disaster of a day, and it isn’t even noon.  _ Harry thought. He looked at Draco, who was a little pale and biting his lip. Harry put a hand on Draco’s shoulder, and he relaxed a little under his touch. Sirius grumbled something about stupid reporters and hexes, Remus was now looking at the paper with a furrowed brow. The sound of the floo brought them back to the present. Madam Bones stept out of the fire and dusted herself off. “Ah, you’re all here.” She said to the four men.

“We just finished all the proper preparations. We are going to arrest Peter Pettigrew. If you follow me, you can wait at the Ministry until we bring him in. We are in your debt for the defeat of you-know-who. So we will let you speak to him when we have brought him in.” She explained, looking carefully at the four men. All four men stood at this, ready to go.

“I assume you also feel guilty about the fact that Dumbledore escaped, don’t you?” Harry asked. Madam Bones paled and seemed shocked but nodded her head a little. “We did the best we could, but the next day the holding cell was empty. We have started an investigation because it seems like an inside job.” She said after looking around to see if there was no one listening. 

Harry sighed. He knew this was going to be a day for a headache. “I do want to talk to Pettigrew but with my godfather,” Harry demanded. Sirius was shocked but nodded. “I will be with you, pup.” Was the only thing he said. Harry felt his heart swell at the word pup every time he heard it. “We will wait outside for moral support,” Draco said with a little smirk. The group went through the floo to the Ministry and were seated outside the Aurors headquarters. There they waited for three hours. Sirius and Remus were growing restless. When Sirius couldn’t take it anymore, he started pacing the waiting room and grumbled under his breath. Remus had talked to five different Aurors for information but got none. Draco and Harry got wizarding chess and were just starting their third game when Madam Bones walked in again. 

  
  


“He’s in a holding cell. We have already questioned him with Veritaserum. Sirius, you are officially cleared of all charges. You and Harry can go in now, but I should warn you. He has been a rat for twelve years. He looks disgusting.” She said with apparent disdain on her face. Harry got up and went with Sirius and Madam Bones. He felt nervous and jittery. He was going to meet the person responsible for the death of his parents. What the fuck should he say? He looked at Sirius, who also looked nervous but also had evident rage written on his face.

  
  


Harry put a hand on Sirius’s arm, and they stopped walking. “Sirius? Are you going to be okay?” Harry asked. Sirius turned to look at Harry and sighed. “You look so much like your father. He was like a brother to me. I will never forgive Peter because he took James away, but I also know that James would have wanted me to forgive him. Because he was a good man and selfragous bastard.” Sirius said with a little smirk on his lips. “I am not ready for that yet.” He admitted. Harry nodded. “I know what you mean. Because of Pettigrew, I did not know my parents. Everybody always tells me how great they were, well everybody except Snape-“ Harry rolled his eyes and Sirius snorted and grumbled “Rotten Snivellus.” “-But I never got the chance to know for myself. I really wanted to know them.” Harry said with a slight tremor. 

They got to the holding cell and went in. Harry gagged when he noticed how much it smelled inside. He put a hand over his nose and mouth. Sirius had made a face. The man who was hunched in a corner squeaked when he saw them. “Sirius? Jame-Harry! Harry! You know me, I was Ron’s rat remember!? Please help me! They want to give me the kiss! Sirius, you can’t let that happen! Think of the great times we had at Hogwarts! Don’t tell me you forgot?!” The man started to beg. He was crawling on his knees towards them. Harry looked at Sirius and mounted  **‘kiss’** ? Sirius shook his head and said, “I’ll tell you later. Peter, get the fuck up.” He finished growling. Peter flinched but stood, shaking a little. “You want to ask me if I forgot about Hogwarts? When you are the one that betrayed James, Lily, Remus, and me? I spent twelve years in Azkaban because of you!” Sirius screamed. Pettigrew blanched.

“Y-you don’t understand, Sirius. The Dark Lord-he would have killed me!” Pettigrew said. “I would have let him! They had a son Peter! The-“ Sirius voice broke a little. “-They had Harry. They had an entire life ahead of them, and you took that away!” Sirius was trembling of rage. Harry took over. “You are the reason I did not know my parents. I grew up with terrible people. Was abused and starved, all because you were scared of a madman.” Harry said, looking straight at Pettigrew with disgust. 

“Harry-ple-please! Don’t let them hurt me! I will tell you everything!” Pettigrew pleaded. Harry sneered at him. “You better tell everything to the Aurors, but I will not help you with anything. You took my childhood away and betrayed everyone you have known. You spent twelve years as a rat; you are nothing.” When Harry was finished, he turned on his heel and got out of the holding cell. Sirius was right behind him. When they were alone, Harry stopped walking and began to tremble, tears streaming over his face. Sirius pulled him in a hug and murmured how good he had been and how his father and mother would have been proud of him. 

When Harry had pulled himself together, they went back to the waiting room where Lupin and Draco were waiting. They got back to the hotel Harry and Draco were staying at. All of them were exhausted, so an early dinner and bed was an excellent idea. They got a letter back from Hermione when Harry and Draco went to bed. She was shocked that Dumbledore escaped and wanted them to be careful. She told them she already missed them and was going to look after the wand Draco got and the similarities it had with Sirius’s wand. She was also excited to see Harry without his glasses, which caused Harry to blush again. 

‘’We should ask Sirius if his mother had a tome with spells. My mother said that all pureblood women had them, and Hermione would love the information she could get from them.’’ Draco told Harry. ‘’Sirius told me that he and Remus were going to explore his old family home tomorrow if we write him, he maybe can check on it then.’’ Harry mused.

Draco was already up to write a letter and gave it to Harry to check before they gave it to Hedwig. ‘’So tomorrow, you are going to meet Theo, and we are going to look for a familiar,’’ Harry said to Draco. Draco looked at Harry with a questionable look. ‘’You are going with me to meet Theo. He wrote he wanted to meet you, and you probably will like him, he’s a sarcastic fucker, but he’s sincere.’’ He stated to Harry with a smirk. ‘’Also, we need to get you to an eye healer so you can rid of those god awful glasses,’’ Draco added. Harry threw a pillow at the blonde wizard. ‘’Okay, so where do we meet Theo? He only wrote Diagon Alley.’’ Harry asked. Draco shrugged. ‘’We usually meet at the ice cream parlor.’’ 

When they were getting ready for bed, Draco hesitated. He didn’t want another nightmare. The last couple of nights, when he slept with Harry in a bed, the nightmares were gone, but he also really did not want to give Harry the wrong vibe. He was biting his lip, and Harry noticed. Harry cleared his throat. Draco looked up at Harry and put a hand through his hair. ‘’Well, goodnight-’’ Draco began but was interrupted by the Gryffindor. ‘’DoyoumindifIstay?’’ Harry said really fast, and he turned away mortified. 

_ What the hell, why would he want that. Just because you slept really well the last couple of days doesn’t mean you should stay every night!  _ Harry scolded himself. Draco was silent, and Harry took that as a hint, he headed to the door. ‘’If you want! I-I don’t mind.’’ Draco said. Harry stopped and turned around. “Really?” He said. Draco raised his eyebrow. “I didn’t have nightmares when you slept here. Which is rich since it is you-“ he said with a smirk, and Harry scoffed but got in the bed. They were asleep within ten minutes from the exhausting day.

When they woke up the next morning, they both didn’t have any nightmares, but they were entangled in each other's arms. “Uh..” Harry stumbled. “Yeah,” Draco said, while swallowing. Harry started to untangle himself, his face scarlet. Draco also tried to get out but fell out of bed. Harry burst out laughing and got a pillow in his face by Draco. “Okay. So we never going to talk about that agreed?” Harry gasped. “No, we definitely aren't.” Draco agreed. 

After breakfast, they went to the pet shop. Draco was looking at owls and saw an enormous orange cat/kneazle, but he didn’t want a cat. Harry was distracted because he saw the snake pit. “Hey Draco, the Slytherin common room is here.” He smirked at the blond wizard. Draco pulled a face but still get a look at the snakes. “You can talk to snakes, right?” Draco asked Harry when looking over Harry’s shoulder. 

Harry shrugged, “Yes, but after last year it’s not my favorite skill.” He admitted. “Yeah, I understand, everybody was bloody awful about it, I included.. but not because of the talking to snake thing.” He said, a little shameful. Harry turned and clapped him on the shoulder. “I already forgave you, so stop making yourself look like a git, we already know you are.” Draco rolled his eyes. “Why are we friends again?” Draco drawled. Harry grinned. “Because you’re my stray, remember? I took you in, and you are so grateful for that, and I am the boy who lived. It’s really a win-win.” He said with a lot of sarcasm and fake glee. 

Draco hit the back of Harry’s head and started to look around again until he heard a hissing sound. He looked back and saw that Harry was speaking to the snake pit. Harry put his arm in the snake pit, and a lovely small python slithers on his outstretched arm. Harry started to make cooing noises at the little snake. ‘’I am going to take this one. He said his name is Jared, it sounds really weird, but I like it.’’ Harry told Draco with a challenging look. Draco just shrugged and got back to look at animals. After a while, he was ready to give up until he saw a white ferret. He immediately liked it and purchased the little creature. Harry was still talking to his new snake Jared, and people were throwing him fearful looks. ‘’Bugger off, don’t you,’’ Draco told them, and he walked out the shop with Harry and their new pets. 

The ferret was tame, and Draco could put it in his robes and take it with him, occasionally the ferret climbed out and perched on Draco’s shoulders. Harry did the same with Jared, they already got a lot of stares in Diagon Alley, but this was definitely an extra cause for it according to all the witches and wizards. 

They just got to the eye healer in a small alley. It was like it wasn’t a life-altering change, but for Harry, it was. Just after five minutes, they were outside again without Harry’s glasses. Harry was still feeling with his fingers where his glasses used to be but found nothing. ‘’Now you need a haircut, I mean come on, how can you live with that rat nest on your head,’’ Draco said looking horrified at Harry’s hair. Harry punched Draco in the arm but couldn’t disagree with him. When they were walking, he told Draco about the haircuts in his childhood. Even the one Petunia gave him because she was sick of it and how she had screamed when it grew back in one night. Draco looked livid but said nothing. He knew you shouldn’t plan a murder out loud. 

They went to a wizard barber, and Harry told the barber to do whatever. He didn’t care about his appearance, but Draco had other ideas and got a couple of magazines and talked in hushed tones to the barber, who nodded sincerely. When Harry was ready and looked in the mirror, he almost didn’t recognize himself. His glasses were gone, and his hair looked awesome. The sides were shaved short, and on the top of his head, he had fashionable spikes. He was already feeling a lot more confident since he was away from the Dursley’s, but this helped a great deal. 

He grinned at Draco, who looked smug but was sporting a blush on his cheeks. Draco also got a haircut. He explained that he hopefully didn’t look like his old, under his father’s thumb self. He almost got the same one as Harry, but his sides were a little longer, because of the blond hair he otherwise looked bold at the sides. 

They got to the ice cream parlor at noon and got some ice cream for lunch. When the door opened, and a lanky dark-haired boy walked in, Draco smiled and got up. Harry had never officially met Theo Nott Jr., but they had seen each other in the halls with Draco’s regularly gang. Nott was thin, and he had little freckles on his cheeks and nose and had dark blue eyes. Nott spotted Draco and grinned. They hugged and clapped each other on the back. Harry was a little nervous, but when he got up to give Theo a hand, Theo also pulled him into a hug and ruffled his hair.

‘’Thank you for saving Draco’s ass,’’ he whispered to Harry. ‘’Uhm, you’re welcome?’’ Harry responded with a little squeak. He was not used to hugs, especially from boys. They let each other go, and Theo looked him up and down and let out a low whistle. ‘’Damm nice hair Potter, and you lost the glasses too. I see Draco is rubbing off on you,’’ Theo said with a smirk and raised an eyebrow. Harry blushed because he never really got compliments. Draco laughed and elbowed Theo in the ribs. 

‘’Well, Theo now you’ve met officially the boy who lived. You can now die in peace, and if you’re going to make fun of him, that will be very quickly arranged.’’ Draco said without a real threat. Theo tskd ‘’Already bloody protective, aren’t you? What did he do suck you off?’’ Harry, who just got something to drink, spit it back out. Draco flushed but started to laugh at Harry’s face, and Theo joined him. ‘’Prudish Potter?’’ This was going to be a long afternoon. Harry thought to himself.

When they were finished with the ice cream, they got back to Draco’s room at the hotel. ‘’So please do explain why you are now called Black, because it really sounds dreadful  **Draco Lucius Black** .’’ Theo drawled and flopped himself down on Draco’s bed. He spotted the red Quidditch jersey and raised his eyebrows but said nothing. Draco began the story of how he met Harry and Hermione again in Diagon Alley a couple of days ago, Theo had a brooding expression and Harry could tell he was thinking of hexes to throw at Ron probably. ‘’So, you are also friendly with Granger now?’’ Theo asked, and Draco and Harry both tensed. 

Draco had sounded sure when he told Hermione and Harry that Theo would not mind that Hermione was muggle-born, but could he have made a mistake? ‘’Is she also reading school books for fun in the summer? Because she is a bit of a nerd, isn’t she?’’ He asked Draco and Harry. 

‘’Do you mind that she’s a muggle-born?’’ Harry asked, not answering the question. Theo shrugged. ‘’Hell, I don’t care. My father is the pureblood prejudice in the house, and when I am free of him, I probably marry a muggle just to spite him.’’ Theo said with fire in his eyes. There was a lot more than the lanky boy now let on, but Harry could wait for an explanation until Theo was ready. 

Draco released a breath he was holding. ‘’Okay, great, because I want to stay on friendly terms with her. She is a force to be reckoned with.’’ Draco said with a smirk. He went on with the story about Dumbledore and what happened with his father. Theo paled a lot at that story. ‘’I think I know how you’re father knew about your involvement with Potter. I heard my dad floo call your dad. I think he was the one who told him.’’ Theo deflated a little and seemed sad. 

Draco put a hand on his shoulder and nodded. ‘’I don’t care. I am better off without him, and you know that. Anyway, a house-elf grabbed me, and my father threw a hex at me, my mother was shouting that I needed to get out and the elf popped me to here to Harry and Hermione. They patched me up, and I stayed with them. Potter offered to take me in.’’ Draco said and looked grateful at Harry. Draco then told Theo about Sirius, who, when he heard the story offered him an escape and that after he was disowned, he got the Black family name. Theo let out a sigh and looked at Harry. ‘’So a lot has happened in just five days?’’ Harry just shrugged and said, ‘’Welcome to the fabulous life of the boy who lived.’’ 

They spent the rest of the afternoon talking and exchanging stories about Hogwarts and Quidditch. Harry liked Theo; he was a true Slytherin and had a lot of snark in him, but Harry liked it nonetheless. ‘’So did you three already thought about how it’s going to be when you go back to Hogwarts? Because you know everybody will have an aneurism that the Slytherin Prince, the Gryffindor Princess, and the boy who lived are friends.’’ Theo said when he almost needed to go home. Harry and Draco looked at each other, and both shrugged. They did not care what everybody would think. 

Harry and Hermione at least had each other in Gryffindor, and Draco could meet them when they wanted outside the common rooms, and Draco had at least Theo in Slytherin, so it wasn’t that they would be alone or something. Draco started to smirk. ‘’We are going to do whatever we want, and anybody who’s against us can bugger off.’’ Harry nodded. ‘’Yeah, I only really don’t like the fact that I need to sleep in the same dorm as Ron, but if he’s going to be trouble, I’ll hex him, and Hermione will help. Shame that I didn’t let the hat sort me into Slytherin, that would’ve been awesome now.’’ Harry said and saw the jaws drop of Draco and Theo. 

‘’You were sorted into Slytherin? I knew it!’’ Draco exclaimed. Harry chuckled. ‘’Yes, I should have gone to Slytherin, but everybody told me it was the ‘bad’ house, and you were nasty to me, so when I saw you were sorted there, I just thought NOPE. So that’s why I’m in Gryffindor.’’ Draco huffed and looked a little sad but didn’t respond to that. Theo just laughed. ‘’Great, so we have a snake undercover at Gryffindor.’’ Harry laughed and thought this was going to be a good year.


	10. Chapter 10

The next few days went in a hurry, and before they knew it, they headed towards the platform. Sirius and Lupin escorted Draco and Harry. When they were on the platform, they already saw a lot of people even if they were early. Draco looked around and was just watching some people bustling around until he saw a familiar blond witch and froze. His mother looked straight at him, and the corner of her mouth twitched a little up when he looked at her. He walked straight forward towards her but was stopped by a tackle of a witch with bushy brown hair. "DRACO! I am really glad to see you here! Where's Harry?" Draco still held Hermione close and smelled her rose perfume. It was lovely, he smiled and looked past Hermione to look at his mother, but she was gone. 

His shoulders sagged. He missed his mother. A poke at his ribs brought him back to the present. "Draco?" Hermione said with a curious look, her head was tipped a little sideways, and Draco looked into her eyes and blushed, realizing he was still holding her. Draco took Hermione's hand and pulled her with him. "Uhm, sorry, I was distracted. Harry is over there. Come, then we can look for a compartment." Draco looked back one more time but didn't saw his mother again. He spotted Harry, Sirius, and Remus talking to Mr. Weasley. Mr. Weasley looked up when they approached, and Draco swallowed.

"Hello Mr. Weasley, I hope you are doing well?" Hermione asked in a sweet voice. Harry looked at Hermione and Draco and saw they were holding hands. Harry thought he should have felt something like jealousy, but that wasn't the emotion he felt right now. He felt proud that Draco could walk with a muggle-born witch and hold hands as if it were the most normal thing. He also noticed that a lot of people were looking at them on the platform. Draco saw him looking and released Hermione's hand, flushing a little. Hermione looked at Draco and then at Harry and also flushed. "Harry! You look great! Did you have a haircut? Wow! You look different without your glasses!" She exclaimed and flew across the couple of feet they were apart and hugged Harry breathlessly. 

She whispered, "I really missed you." Harry pulled back a little and stroked a lost curl out of her face. "I missed you too, Draco and I have something for you we think you will like." Harry got out the tome they got from Sirius. "It was from Sirius's great grandmother. It's a tome with an assortment of spells we don't get at Hogwarts, none dark we have checked off course. We thought you would like the opportunity to learn something from it." Hermione beamed at the boys. 

Mr. Weasley scraped his throat, and the three teens looked at him. "Yes, I am doing well Hermione, but I am a little concerned about Ron. He got back a couple of weeks ago from Diagon Alley and locked himself in his room. He didn't even come out to eat! A couple of days later, there was a raid at our house. They took Ron's rat, and it turned out to be a former Death Eater, but I am sure you already knew this because of Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin." He looked over his glasses at the trio who were flushed because they forgot them for a moment. Harry answered, "Yes, we knew about the rat, Ron and I got in a fight a couple of weeks back. I don't think we can be friends anymore." He said truthfully. Mr. Weasley looked taken aback but nodded. "I was afraid something like that happened. I am sorry to hear it, but if you feel like that, that's your own choice." He said goodbye and left the group. 

"Okay pup, you're going to write to me every week, I don't care if nothing happened, but I need to know you're okay and doing great in classes, Remus and I have made something for you, we also had one in school, but Filch took it. So we made a new one -" He gave an empty parchment to Harry, who looked skeptical. "- you need to tap your wand on it and say  **I solemnly swear I am up to no good.** Then the map will explain itself, and when you're finished, you can tap it again and say  **Mischief managed.** " Sirius explained, looking giddy. Remus looked apprehensive but didn't say anything. 

Harry nodded and hugged Sirius and then Remus. It felt great to have them. He didn't know what they were yet to himself. It felt like they were uncles now, but he did not have a great reference to that. The first horn sounded and Harry, Draco, and Hermione got on the train with their luggage and sat in an empty compartment. Soon there was a knock on the door, and Theo strutted in. He threw himself on the bench and put his head in Draco's lap, who smacked him on the shoulder but let him stay. Hermione looked wary, but after Theo cracked a few jokes, she relaxed and got out the tome she got. 

Harry and Draco played wizarding chess, and Theo fell asleep after reading for a while, still laying on Draco's lap. Hermione got excited when she saw the spells for clear skin, silky hair, and even one for teeth! She started to do the spells for her hair and asked the boys who didn't notice at first to check if it went alright. Harry and Draco looked up, and their jaws dropped to the floor. Hermione's hair was almost straight with slight curls and looked a little darker brown now. It also seemed longer because it was more straight, and it looked beautiful soft. She started fidgeting when they didn't say anything after a couple of moments. "Doesn't it look good?" She asked a little shy. Theo had woken up and looked up at Hermione. "Granger, it looks beautiful we already knew that there was a princess under the nerdy disguise, but you are taking the crown." He winked at her, and Hermione smirked. "Well, thank you Theo, at least you can still function." She said with a wink. 

Draco and Harry still hadn't said anything but turned both red. "Mionee….-" Harry began, but Draco kicked Harry in the shins and said, "You really look good Mione." Hermione blushed but was very pleased with herself. Next, she tried the tooth spell. She took out a mirror, and after five minutes, her front teeth had shrunken, and she smiled at her reflection. "Are your parents going to be okay with that? They're dentists, right?" Harry asked. He didn't care about the change for her teeth, but he knew she was self-conscious about it. "Yes, they are, and no, they are not going to be pleased, but I don't see them until Christmas, so at this moment, I'm just going to enjoy this." She said with a smile. 

She always had been self-conscious about her hair and teeth, now that she could change them really meant a lot to her. She didn't care about nice clothes or makeup, but this made her feel better about herself, which was something she valued. Theo and Draco nodded in agreement and said she looked really nice. Hermione started reading the tome again, and the boys went to change in their school robes. Hermione was already changed, so she just waited until they would come back. When they were gone, it took exactly thirty seconds before Pansy Parkinson, Millicent Bulstrode, and Daphne Greengrass walked in. 

The Slytherin girls looked like they were looking for trouble. When they took in Hermione, they looked a little startled at her new appearance, but Pansy started to sneer. "What have you done to drakey? We know he was with Potter and you in Diagon Alley, it was all over the paper!" Hermione cringed a little at the name drakey but filed it away for later amusement in teasing Draco. "You really should ask him yourself. I don't speak for my friends." Hermione responded with a raised eyebrow. 

Pansy looked taken aback. "Friends?" Daphne asked. Hermione took in the blonde witch. She was quite pretty with her long hair and green eyes. Millicent looked like a bodyguard and only grunted. Hermione cringed a little after remembering to be put in a headlock the year before by the bigger witch. "Yes, friends, we started being friends when we were at summer break," Hermione said with a smug expression. Pansy was looking like she was going to throw a fit. "Ladies! How nice to meet you at this compartment." They heard from the hallway. The girls all turned to see Theo smirking and casually leaning against the wall. "Theo, what the hell is happening? Are you also friends with the mudblood?" Pansy nearly screeched. 

Hermione sighed. She had expected that there would be people against her friendship with Draco. She just hoped he didn't mind. Theo's look turned cold. "No, I am not friends with the mudblood-" he started, and Pansy smiled nastily at Hermione. "- but I am, however, friends with Hermione Granger, the muggle-born witch." He finished. Hermione was shocked. She just met him but smiled at the wizard who had stood up for her. He winked at her. Pansy turned red now, and Daphne and Millicent looked a little afraid of what would happen next. They heard Draco laughing at something Harry had said, and they turned the corner to see the four girls and Theo. 

Harry took in the play in front of him and looked from the Slytherin girls to Hermione and mouthed; Are you okay? Hermione just nodded. Draco also looked at her with a worried look. "What is the matter here?" He asked to no one in particular. "Drakey-" Draco visibly cringed. "- is it true that you are friends with Potter and Granger?" Pansy asked with a sugary sweet tone, and Hermione gagged a little. "Yes, I am and stop calling me Drakey Pans. It really is awful." Draco said with a shudder. Harry put a hand before his mouth to stop the laugh that was almost escaping him. 

Pansy pouted and looked back at Hermione. "If I find out you have put him under some kind of spell, I'll hex you to next year." She threatened. Hermione rolled her eyes. "Really Pansy, what is my gain in spelling Draco to be friends with me? And you can't use magic outside Hogwarts, well only Harry can, but that's not the point." Hermione said in her bossy voice she so excelled at. Pansy looked a little lost for words. "To be the next lady Malfoy, of course, it's an honor!" She almost shouted at Hermione. "You do realise his name isn't Malfoy anymore, do you?" Hermione responded. Daphne chuckled a little and said. "Really, Draco Black? What on earth Draco?" Draco flushed and just said that he would explain when they were at the common room that night. 

The Slytherin girls went away, Pansy still throwing Hermione nasty looks, but she wasn't bothered by it. A couple of hours later, they were at the Gryffindor table and having dinner. Hermione and Harry were having a lot of fun with Seamus, Fred, and George. Ron was sitting as far away as possible, throwing them dirty looks. Seamus, Fred, and George weren't bothered that Hermione and Harry were friends now with two Slytherin's. They even started to plan pranks to play at the Slytherin's with Theo and Draco's help.

When dinner was done, Harry and Hermione went to the office of Deputy Headmistress McGonagall. They were seated and offered a biscuit before McGonagall began. "Please do explain what has happened to Dumbledore. I don't know what crimes he was convicted of but would like to know if it is all justified. I can assure you that we have put on extra wards on the castle to keep him out. So he can't bother you when you are on the grounds." She said. Harry felt like he should tell everything that has happened. McGonagall has always been kind to him and he began to tell her the whole story, even about the Dursleys and the abuse and that Dumbledore had known about it. Through the entire story, McGonagall looked abashed. 

When Harry finished, she looked at the brink of tears. "I put all my faith in Dumbledore. I am ashamed that I didn't listen to you Miss Granger, and I am truly sorry that you had to experience all that Mister Potter." Harry swallowed heavily. He felt relieved and touched that McGonagall was responding like this. She changed the subject, clearly holding back her emotions. "Miss Granger, we also need to discuss your roster. It's impossible to study all the subjects you have chosen." She turned sternly at Hermione, who looked a little shocked at that. "But Professor! I really want to take a lot of classes, and I also have the books-" McGonagall put a hand up to silence her. 

"Most subjects you don't need to take. Like muggle studies, you already grew up with muggles Miss Granger, it's a waste because the curriculum hasn't changed in the last ten years-" Hermione started to object, but Harry put a hand on her arm to silence her again. "-I also really think you would not like Divination and Care of Magical Creatures. I advise you to drop those also." McGonagall said sternly, and Hermione pouted. Harry thought about it and started talking. "Professor. I also think I want to change my curriculum if that's possible. I want to drop Divination. Because I also think it will be a waste. Could I take Ancient Runes like Hermione? Then we can do that class together." Hermione looked a little relieved but still pouted a little. McGonagall nodded and changed his roster with a flick of her wand. Hermione reluctantly agreed to drop the classes McGonagall suggested, and they were sent to their dorms. 

When they walked into the common room, there was a party going, lead on by Fred and George, of course. Hermione just rolled her eyes and went to her dorm. Harry stayed for 30 minutes before also retiring to bed. When Ron got to the dorm, there was an awkward silence. Neville, Seamus, and Dean looked troubled between the two former best friends. "So, I heard you still prefer Death Eater scum above me?" Ron snarled after five minutes of silence. The other boys gasped and turned to Harry to see him react. Harry counted to ten in his head and took a couple of slow breaths. "Ron-" Harry sounded very calm, what was more terrifying than screaming. "-you really should learn to shut up sometimes." Harry turned his back at Ron and started putting his stuff away. That was a mistake. Ron got out his wand and hexed Harry's back. It burned like hell, and Harry lost to gravity and fell. Jared slithered out of Harry's robes and bit in Ron's ankles. (Jared wasn't poisonous, but Ron did not know that.) 

Seamus and Dean reacted after Ron jumped up and down because of Jared's bite and hexed Ron, and Neville got out to get to McGonagall. Because of the commotion, everyone in Gryffindor knew what happened within minutes, and Hermione rushed in the boy's dormitory to help Harry. She sniffled, and Jared curled on her arm. She was cradling Harry's head when McGonagall came in. She demanded that Ron and Harry got to the infirmary, and Hermione was allowed to go with them. "Headmistress, could you possibly send out word to Draco? He should know what happened to Harry." Hermione asked carefully, she knew Draco would want to know what happened, but she wished that he was there for her too. 

McGonagall looked worried and shocked but told one of the portraits to get the blonde wizard. After a few minutes, Draco rushed in the infirmary and demanded to be told what had happened. When Hermione had told him the story, he almost jumped at Ron, but McGonagall held him back. "Please behave, Mister Black. Or else you need to get back to your common room." Draco calmed himself and took Hermione's hand in his and went to sit by Harry's bed. After thirty minutes, Harry woke up and felt good enough to sit upright. "That arsehole, who throws a hex at someone's back?" He grumbled. Ron was still unconscious. "Really, Potter, this must be a fucking record to be sent to the infirmary on the first day!" Draco said with a little sarcasm. Hermione smiled a little at that. She was still holding his hand. McGonagall looked at the trio and saw things had changed. She was also very worried. She couldn't put Harry again in the same dorm room with Ron because it seemed that this could happen again.

"Mister Potter, we need to discuss your sleeping arrangement. You can go back to your dorm because mister Weasley will be out for the night, but it is probably for best if we put you in another dorm." McGonagall said gravely. Harry was sad but nodded. Just his luck to be hexed on the first night back. Draco looked like he had an epiphany. "Professor, I have a private dorm. Before my father disowned me, he pulled some strings at the board to have my own room. I just found out that's still the case. It's big enough for two beds. So Harry could be my roommate for this year." Draco said, a little apprehensive. He hadn't expected to have his own dorm again this year, but the prefect showed it to him again with the password, and all his stuff was already in the room. 

Hopefully, Lucius forgot about it. McGonagall looked troubled. "Since when did you two became so close?" She asked with a worried look between Harry and Draco. Harry told her about what happened and that Draco was his 'stray,' Draco rolled his eyes at that and scoffed. He also told her that they had shared a room in the previous weeks. Not telling the fact that they had separate rooms but still slept in the same bed, she probably would not like to know that. McGonagall nodded and said she would think about the offer. It was a strange sight to see the boy who lived so comfortable with the Slytherin prince. Hermione, who had been silent most of the time, was sad that Harry would not be in the Gryffindor tower the following year but thought they could always go and study in de library together. "Professor, I still can go to the Gryffindor common room whenever I like? Because I still will be in Gryffindor, right?" Harry asked just to be sure. "Yes, your house will not change even if you are not in the dorms," McGonagall replied. "Okay, great, then I don't see a problem with this plan." He exclaimed happily. He was a little sad that he couldn't stay with Neville, Seamus, or Dean, but they would manage. 

The next morning the entire school had heard about what had happened between Ron and Harry. Ron was not in classes the first day, so Harry got all the questions about the incident.  **Is it true he tried to kill you? Did your pet really bit him? Are you going to sleep with Black?** Harry spit out his drink at the last question when he was at lunch, and Lavender Brown asked him that. "What do you mean, Lavender?" He asked, a little nervous. "Well, I heard that you are friends with Black and that he has offered that you sleep with him in his private dorm." She answered. Harry could hit himself.  _ Get your mind out of the gutter!  _ He scolded his inner voice. 

"Yes, I'm going to sleep in his dorm. Everything is already set out. McGonagall also thinks this is really good for inter-house unity or something." Harry said. Lavender looked skeptical but shrugged. Harry, Hermione, and Draco had double potions after lunch and headed there together. They were getting a lot of looks all over because of the weird paring with the three of them. Blaise Zabini and Theo Nott also joined the group and together, they walked to the dungeons. Zabini was shamelessly flirting with Hermione, who was flushed but was standing her ground. "Granger, you are quite the tease, aren't you?" He purred at Hermione, wiggling his eyebrows. 

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Well, Zabini I don't know what you are talking about." She said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. Harry and Draco cracked up, they knew Hermione could hex Zabini into next month if he wasn't careful, but it was funny to watch. They were both a bit annoyed that Zabini was flirting like that with Hermione, but she wouldn't appreciate it if they stepped in. Zabini groaned at the hair flip. The witch was driving him crazy. The door of the dungeon opened, and Severus Snape beckoned them in. With a glare pointed at Harry and Draco. That last one was new, and Draco squirmed a little at the glare.

Harry was sitting next to Hermione on one side and Draco on the other. In front of his least favorite class. Snape was lecturing them and writing on the board. Harry worked with Hermione and Draco with Theo. "Mister Potter, Mister Black, I want you to stay after class for- a word." Snape snarled when he was close enough so only the first row could hear. Hermione started to protest because they hadn't done anything wrong, but Draco silenced her with a look. He had expected this because of his father. 

His godfather had always treated him right but mostly chose his father's side. It was also no surprise for Harry because Snape hated his guts. Potions was finished, and Harry and Draco stayed behind. Hermione was being ushered out by Zabini and Nott. When they were alone, Snape started talking. "Please explain what the hell happened and why you are all so.-" he paused for effect. "-friendly. It is nauseating." He said to them. Draco started the story, and Harry pitched in when necessary. "So now we are friends, and I no longer bear the name Malfoy. I am a lot happier now than I was the last couple of years." Draco finished with a smile aimed at Harry. 

Snape looked between the boys and focused on Harry. "Without your glasses and with your new haircut, you look a lot less like your father and more like your mother, Mister Potter," Snape said. Harry was shocked and just nodded.  _ What the hell was that? A compliment or insult?  _ He thought to himself. "Mister Black, I will not say anything to your father about you when I meet him. I do not approve of what he did and shall distance myself from him as much as possible." Draco nodded and was grateful his godfather was siding with him. "Could you please get a message to my mother if you see her?" Draco asked carefully. Snape nodded, and Draco wrote a note to his mother. Snape took it and promised to give it to her the next time he saw her. "You can go now to the Great hall for dinner. Detention is over." Snape said, and he left the room. Harry was really confused. This was the nicest Snape had been to him since... ever.

They got to the great hall and saw that there were a lot of whispers and stares aimed at them. Harry soon saw why this was happening. Ron was back at the Gryffindor table and looked livid. Harry sighed. He really did not want to sit at the same table as Ron. Draco pulled at Harry's robes, and Harry looked at him. "You can sit with me. I really don't care what Slytherin thinks, and I don't see Hermione, Blaise, or Theo yet, so they still need to come." Harry shrugged and walked with Draco to the Slytherin table and sat down. The whole Great Hall fell silent. Even the teachers were watching the spectacle. "Can you pass the salt Potter?" Draco drawled loud enough for everyone to hear. Harry shrugged. "I already am seated with you. What more do you want?" He smirked, and Draco couldn't contain his laughter.

Fred and George started clapping and whooping from the Gryffindor table, and a lot of people joined and laughed. Hermione came in with Theo and Blaise and saw Draco and Harry sitting at the Slytherin table and went to them without a blink of an eye, she was followed by the other two Slytherin's. Harry saw that many people at the Slytherin table were throwing them dirty looks, but nobody said anything. After dinner, they went to Draco and Harry's room. It had its own small common room with a fireplace and a small library. Apparently, all of them were Draco's books, so of course, Hermione was impressed.

Draco and Harry played with their familiars and decided to go fly for a while because they didn't have any homework yet. Blaise and Theo joined them, and Hermione was sitting on the stands with the pureblood tome. She had gotten a lot of compliments about her hair, so she was still really happy about it. Ginny, Dean, and Neville joined Hermione on the stands. Hermione and Ginny were catching up and having a lot of fun. Dean and Neville played exploding snap until Draco landed on the stands. 

  
"Mione, Harry just told me you don't like flying, why not?" He pouted. Hermione laughed and thought it looked cute on him. "Because I don't understand how they work, I don't like heights, and I am terribly afraid of falling, and I really, really don't like heights." She said while counting on her fingers. Harry also landed on the stands next to Draco. "Mioneeee, we can teach you, we promise you we will be careful with you," Harry said while he put on his puppy dog eyes.  _ Shite I don't want to say no to those two.  _ Hermione thought to herself. "Not tonight boys, I want to catch up with Ginny. We were just going back to the dorms. BYE!" Hermione said, and she pulled Ginny with her. Ginny smirked. She was totally going to tease Hermione merciless about the two boys who clearly wanted to be more than friends to Hermione.


	11. Chapter 11

The next couple of months were fast going. The entire school was beginning to mingle more with other houses, and the headmistress was incredibly proud and happy about that. Harry and Draco were inseparable and becoming best friends. Hermione was also with them a lot, but Ginny became an excellent friend to her, so she spent a lot of her time with her. Hermione still hadn't given in to flying lessons from the boys. Every time it came up, she ran for the hills. After nearly a month, Harry and Draco had a plan to get her on a broom. 

"Mione, I really need help with ancient runes, and the professor said it would be a good idea to study these at night. So could you help me tonight?" Harry pleaded with puppy dog eyes. Hermione gave in immediately. A little study session was okay, right? Ginny, who was in on the plan, smirked at Harry and Draco. When evening fell, Harry fetched Hermione from the library practically, dragging her away from it. "Harry, why are we going to the astronomy tower?" Hermione asked with a little fear in her voice. "Just because you can see everything so much clearer there." He casually shrugged. When he turned away, he had a shit-eating grin on his face. 

Harry had really changed since he had left the Dursleys. He was now taller than Hermione and was getting bulkier. Hermione had noticed this a little too much lately. She loved the way his hair was now and that he didn't need glasses anymore. The teasing that Ginny give did not help at all. Hermione was always secretly reading muggle romance novels and had started to read one about a girl who fell in love with two guys. It struck home, so she told Ginny about it, who laughed herself silly too much discomfort of the older girl.

When they were on the tower, Hermione knew she walked into a trap. Draco was already standing there with two brooms in his hands and a huge smirk. Hermione involuntarily shivered at the sight. Not of fear of the brooms and the flying but because she had dreamed about this. Alone with the boys in the astronomy tower with a picnic blanket and a lot of ice cream. She was a teenage girl, after all. She had a lot of imagination. That both boys looked so excited and handsome was no help at all for the shiverings Hermione had. "Mione, we really are going to be careful. Or are you cold?" Draco said carefully. He did not want her to fear them for the rest of their lives or to be cold. That's not good either. Hermione turned scarlet and pinched herself without them noticing.  _ Yep, not a dream.  _

The boys were looking at her with a questionably look. Hermione squirmed a little. "Uhm, okay, so you probably want me to fly with you, don't you?" Her voice was trembling a little with that. Draco came up to her and took her hand to soothe her. "We will not force you off course, and we thought you could probably better be relaxed a little when we are going to fly. So we have a surprise."  _ O Godric.  _ She thought as there was a picnic blanket behind Harry. She turned a bright red shade of magenta and fanned herself a little. "Is it hot in here?" Draco and Harry started to worry. It was November for god's sake. Was she that anxious to fly? Hermione scraped her throat, smiled a little, and started channeling every Gryffindor courage she had to say the next thing and tease them a little. "So, is this a date with both of you?" She scolded herself for the squeak in her voice. Now it was Draco and Harry's turn to turn scarlet. The boys started to say different things, but nothing came out, so they looked like a couple of gaping fish. Hermione started to laugh. 

The boys finally seemed to catch on and started to laugh also. Harry thought a little about it, he liked Hermione and Draco, and he knew it was with both more than friendship. "Only if you want to." He blurted out. Draco choked on his saliva. He had not seen that coming. The smirk Harry supported was enough to have the younger girls in school squeal with delight. Hermione thought that her face and emotions really couldn't take another wave of heat. "Uh, I really don't have an answer for that." She whispered.  _ This was not what I expected.  _ Harry smirked at that and walked to them. He took her other hand and kissed Hermione on the cheek. Draco was a little hesitant but kissed the other cheek. Hermione returned the favor. The grins that spread over their faces were priceless.

Hermione cleared her throat again. "Well, shall we then?" They walked to the picnic blanket and started to drink a little butterbeer and talked and laughed. They felt that there was more than friendship, but it needed to tread carefully. After an hour, Ginny landed on the Astronomy tower and joined them. "So you're ready, Hermione?" The other girl said with a smile. "As ready as I ever going to." Hermione murmured, and they got up. She first got on a broom with Harry. She was sitting behind him and almost crushed him in a tight embrace, but he didn't mind at all and was grinning like a fool. He took off without telling her, he knew she would have had her eyes shut tightly so she wouldn't notice at first, so when she asked when they would start, he laughed a little. "Open your eyes, Hermione." He said softly. 

They were flying over the lake. He heard her gasp. "It's beautiful." She murmured. Harry let out a booming laugh, which resulted in getting a slap on his arm. "Harry Potter, don't laugh at me." She scolded. He could not see her face, and that really was a shame, he thought. Draco was flying next to them on their right, and Ginny was on their left. If something went wrong, they would be back up. They flew for a quarter-hour, Hermione was a lot more relaxed now. When they landed on the island in the lake, she hugged Harry. "Thank you, Harry it was lovely." She kissed his cheek, and Harry turned red. 

This was going a lot better than they had expected. Hermione would fly with Draco next. She was in front instead of behind him on the broom. Draco had an arm around her waist to hold her and had the other hand on his broom to steer. Ginny was gone now, believing they did not need her help anymore. They flew back to the castle, with a detour over the forbidden forest. Hermione could only stare at the beauty of the forest with the castle in the background. "Do you like it?" Draco whispered against her ear, which made her shiver, and she scooted a little back until she was entirely against him. "A lot." Was her only answer. The smirk he supported was only to be seen by Harry, who gave them a thumbs up.

When they landed again at the Astronomy Tower, they got back at the picnic blanket and just gazed at the stars now the sun was down. "That was a really nice first date," Hermione exclaimed as she smiled at the boys who were looking a little sheepish. They both agreed and kissed her on the cheeks again. "You didn't kiss each other on the cheek," Hermione said with a smirk. She had already seen them stealing glances at each other. You did not have to be a genius to figure out they were both bisexual. Plus, she knew that they slept together in the last week of the summer holiday. Even if it was only sleeping, they both had told her about it.

There were no secrets between them what was a real relief. Hermione really did not mind that they were also attracted to each other. They just needed a little push. Harry and Draco both looked shocked. When they looked at each other, their cheeks were pink. Harry, who had undergone a significant transformation physically and emotionally, smiled and just went with it. He stood and sat on his knees next to Draco with a determined look on his face. Ready to be the fearless Gryffindor. Draco spluttered but did not stop Harry when he kissed him on the cheek. Draco grinned at him, and Harry grinned back. Hermione giggled at their expressions. 

They escorted Hermione back to the tower, and both got a kiss, yes still on the cheek, and went back to their dorm. They agreed they would keep the current situation a secret from other people. It wasn't that they were ashamed about it, but teens (and adults) really could be awful about something they did not understand. They weren't even sure they knew what the current situation was. They just felt really good together, not only as friends.

Draco and Harry were almost at their dorm when Draco suddenly stopped walking. "Harry.." he started. Harry turned around and saw Draco worrying his lip. He saw that Draco was fretting about something. Harry put his hand up so Draco couldn't say anything. "I know. I don't want to ruin our friendship either, but you have to admit it feels great. Or don't you think so?" Harry had taken Draco's hand in his. Draco looked at their joined hands. "Yeah, I feel that too, but I really don't want to lose you or Hermione." Harry thought that was adorable and couldn't resist. He leaned in and put his lips on Draco's. It was a soft touch, but it felt like fire as if their lips had waited for this touch. Harry felt Draco's hands come up to his face, and he traced his tongue over Draco's bottom lip for permission to enter. Draco granted that quickly. They stood there in the middle of the corridor in their own world for a couple of moments until an outraged scream was heard. 

They pulled apart and looked at the culprit who disrupted their moment. Ronald Weasley stood a couple of meters down with his face as red as his hair. "Are you fucking serious mate?! Him? I didn't even know you were gay! What the fuck Harry!" He bellowed at the couple. Harry was a moment stunned before rage surged through him. "What the fuck Ron! I am attracted to guys and girls, so get the fuck over it. And thank you so fucking much for ruining my first kiss, arsehole!" He snarled at the redhead. Draco had a scowl on his face aimed at Ron. "Go away Weasley, just leave." Draco said, reeling in his anger. 

He did not want to give the redhead an excuse to charge, but apparently, it did not matter. "You scumbag! You already stole my two best friends, and now you are toying with them! You are just taking advantage of Harry! Admit it, you Death Eater!" Ron screamed at Draco, Draco was shocked. He hated Weasley at that moment. How dare he compare him to a death eater? He was not his father. Draco had his wand out before he knew it and aimed at Weasley. Ron took a step back. "You see, Harry! He's plain evil that boyfriend of yours!" Ron spat. 

"Of course, Ron! Yeah, I can see it now. He is evil because he defends himself when provoked! Seriously it's that he was faster; otherwise, it was my wand in your face!" Harry said, exasperated dragging his hands over his face. Ron turned white, and Harry frowned. He did not think that Ron had any sense left to listen to him, so why did he turn white? His thoughts were answered. "Mister Black, would you be so kind as to put your wand away?" Snape drawled behind them. Harry gulped, and Draco turned red and did as asked.  _ Shite...  _

"What is the meaning of this?" Snape asked the three boys with a sneer aimed at them. Ron started to say something but was interrupted by Draco. "We apologies if we were loud, sir. We were just going back to our dorm, and Weasley saw us. Because of some unfinished business between us, we talked. We apologized and were just going our separate ways," Draco uttered, and Harry and Ron stood there gaping at him. 

Snape looked at them and surely must have known the lie that was told. "Is this right, Potter?" Snape spat the last word. Harry got an elbow in his ribs from Draco and simply nodded as an answer. "I see. Twenty points of Gryffindor and five of Slytherin and don't start this- kind of discussion again." Snape said, and he turned and walked away, his robes swirling behind him. 

Harry started to poke Draco in the ribs. "How the hell did you do that? Any other time we would have gotten a month worth of detention." He said, still poking the blond. "Yeah, and why did you do it?" Ron asked. He sounded nervous as if he was still afraid of being hexed. Draco turned to look at Ron. "I didn't do this for you, Weasel. I just don't want the whole school to know that I was kissing Harry. So just keep it to yourself." He said with a sneer. 

He took Harry's hand and started walking away back to their dorm. "I will, but not for you," Ron shouted after them. They turned again to look at Ron. "I will do it for you, Harry. It's hard for me to understand you two-"gesturing wild with his hands at Harry and Draco. "- but you were my friend once. I hope we can be that again sometime." He finished. Harry was stunned at that confession. "Then, you need to accept that Draco is part of the deal now too, and I will not accept your intolerance, and you need to apologize to Hermione. You know for what," Harry said, and without waiting for a reply, he turned again, pulling Draco with him.

When they got back to their dorm, they still were holding hands. Draco looked smug when he looked at Harry. "So, I was your first kiss?" He said with raised eyebrows. "You could have fooled me, Potter, because that snog was quite something." He was smirking now. Harry felt mortified. He did not know what he was doing with the kiss, so he automatically thought the kiss had been terrible; he put his beet-red face in his hands. "O for Godric's sake, that bad huh?" He mumbled. Draco chuckled and pulled Harry's hands away from his face to look him in the eyes. Harry looked up a little and saw him smiling. "It was my first kiss too, but it felt too good to be bad." He said to him with a shy smile. Harry smiled at that. It had felt great to him too. Draco leaned in, and Harry met him halfway. 

The fire was again there. Harry put his hands in Draco's hair, and Draco sighed against Harry's lips. They were kissing a little while when Draco felt a familiar twinge against his leg and pulled away from Harry. Harry pouted at the lost contact. "Uh, I think we should go to sleep. I'm going to take a shower first." Draco said with a blush on his cheeks.  _ Fuck! Think about your grandfather, grandmother, Professor McGonagall! Do not think about Harry's soft lips against yours or his hands in your hair. I said, do not think about that!  _ Draco scolded himself. Harry was unaware of the internal screaming of Draco and stepped towards him, grabbed his hips, and kissed him again.

When Harry pulled Draco closer, their hips met, and Harry and Draco both felt how great they found the kiss. Harry, the dense idiot who he was, suddenly understood Draco's hesitation just seconds ago, but the contact really felt good. When Harry and Draco both took a step back, Harry moaned softly. Draco bit on his lip because that was the best thing he had ever heard. "Okay. Yes, I need a shower too." Harry said quickly, complete with a very red head. At the sight of Draco's face, he promptly announced that he meant apart. 

"Okay. What I'm going to say is not something my whole body agrees to right now, but it definitely needs to be said. We just had our first kiss, and despite how great it felt, we are not going to take it any further right now because we are freaking young and just started this. I don't want to feel awkward at all with you, so I'm just going to say this, I'm not ready for a next step, but kissing you is amazing, and I really want to continue that for a long time." Draco said very quickly. Harry let out a deep breath. "Great, because I feel the same and also don't want to make things awkward, so if we can be open about this, I think we are going to be fine, and that was pretty Gryffindor coming from you." He said with a smirk. Earning a slap on the back of his head from the blond boy. They showered and got into their own beds, both feeling at ease and great about how the evening went. 

The next day they took Hermione apart. The boys had agreed to tell her what happened between them. When they were finished, both waited for her response. They did not see it coming what she said. "I'm going to hex Ron! How dare he interrupt that!" They were both shocked and gaped at this wonderful girl in their life. "You aren't upset?" Harry asked carefully. Hermione frowned. "No, of course not, why would I? I like you two, I think you two also like me, and you like each other, I read a lot about this kind of relationships, and it's totally fine. When you're ready, you can kiss me. I'm going to confess that I have kissed before- nobody you know I'm sure about that, but so that you know I'm not completely in the dark here." She said in her matter of fact lecture voice. After a moment of silence and two boys who looked like they just had won the lottery, she started to squirm a little by their attention. "Mione, you are the most amazing witch I have ever met," Draco said with awe. Harry just nodded, took her hand, and gave a kiss on it. She blushed a little from the gesture. Theo and Blaise found them laughing and studying a while later and joined them for a study session. The boys got some vibes of the three but did not question it. 

It was almost December, and Hermione had asked her parents if she could stay for Christmas break at Harry's. Sirius and Remus had gone to repair every house Harry owned and instructed the house elves, who were ecstatic they finally had a master again, to clean the Potter mansion until it was spotless for Christmas. Draco, who was still kind of Harry's stray, was also staying for break at the mansion. Hermione got a letter from her parents saying it was okay with them, but they wanted her, Harry, and Draco to join for Christmas dinner. The boys agreed to that immediately. 

Draco had been sad when he started to realize he would not see his mother for Christmas. When he told Harry and Hermione about it, Hermione got an idea. "Why don't you write her a letter? An owl to deliver it would be a bad idea, but you can ask a house-elf to deliver it to her personally so that your father would not know about it." Draco smiled but threw the idea away. "Only a house-elf who has been to the mansion can apparate in and out, and Harry's elves haven't been there," Draco told them. 

"Dobby!" Harry said excited, and there was a pop and then a squeak with a flurry of motion when a crying house-elf threw himself at Draco and started to sob. "Young-master! Dobby-has-missed-you. Master Harry-you-are-the-"Dobby started to cry harder so they couldn't understand him anymore. Draco was holding back tears of his own and just patted a little awkward the back of the crying creature. "I missed you too Dobby. Are you okay? I heard from Harry and father what happened. I'm truly sorry you got treated like that by father." He said to Dobby, who sniffed and looked at him with those big eyes full of tears. They asked Dobby if he could deliver a letter to Narcissa from Draco, and Dobby nodded and popped away.

When they had dinner at the Gryffindor table this time, they went back to the dorm of Draco and Harry. They didn't think they had anything to worry about anymore in the Gryffindor dorms for Harry, but McGonagall didn't need to know that. Harry and Draco were too comfortable together in their private room. They just settled in, and Draco was playing with his ferret. There was a 'pop,' and they saw Dobby standing in front of them. "Master Black, sir, I have a letter back from your mother." He said with apprehension. Draco's eyes widened, and he took the letter of the elf and started to read. He had written in his letter that he missed her, and told her about the relationship he had with Harry and Hermione. He didn't expect a response because he thought she would be disappointed, mainly because of Hermione's heritage. 

_ My Dragon, _

_ I'm delighted to hear from you. I was afraid that you would never want to speak to me again because of my weakness in the mansion so many times. I apologize my Dragon that I could not interfere. I cannot express how proud I am that you took the matter in your own hands and are now called Black. It's an honor that you are now the heir of my old family. I hope that you will remember how much I love you even if I'm not near.  _

_ I'm also glad to hear that you are fond of your friends. I cannot approve of the fact that you're with a half-blood wizard and muggle-born witch, but I really want you to be happy. You already have proven yourself that you don't need your parent's approval about your life. Your father made sure of that. I will not forgive him for that.  _

_ My Dragon, I'm so very proud of you as a person. I will miss you, but I need you to be safe. Please don't write to me again. I'm afraid of what will happen if you do.  _

_ I will always love you.  _

_ Your mother.  _

Draco saw dried teardrops on the letter, and there were falling new ones on the letter. He was heartbroken, lost his mother now, and hoped that she would be braver and that she would fight for him, but this letter let him show that wouldn't happen, and it tore him apart. He felt someone take away the letter and crawl on his lap while wrapping him in soft small arms. Hermione was straddling him. At another moment, it would have been sexy. Right now, he put his arms around her and hid his face in her hair, and started to sob silently. Harry had put his hand on his shoulder. Even it was just a small gesture, it helped. They stayed like that for a long time. 

When it was getting late, and time to sleep, Draco couldn't cry anymore and was still holding on to Hermione. Harry had ordered some hot milk with honey from Dobby to calm them down before going to sleep. Hermione untangled herself from Draco so they both could take a cup from the house elf. She didn't want to leave Draco tonight, and Harry agreed that she should stay. 

Dobby had gotten some sleeping gear for Hermione. It was convenient that he could just apparate between the dorms. She had changed in the bathroom when the boys were changing in their dorm. When she walked into the room, she felt self-conscious as she didn't know where she should sleep. Draco and Harry looked up when she came back and noticed the worried look she had. It was a bit strange. This would be the first time she would sleep with them, and if anyone found out, they would be in big trouble. I mean a girl not sleeping in her own bed and in the presence of two boys? That shouted trouble. 

She looked at the boys,  _ her boys _ , and smiled at her own thoughts. She walked towards Draco, took his hand, and pulled him to his bed. She looked at Harry, who was getting ready to climb in his own bed. "Harry, you should lay down with us," Hermione said. Harry looked lost in his thoughts. "You sure?" He said with disbelief. Hermione was the one who had consoled Draco the most tonight, so he thought she had the most rights to sleep next to him. Hermione rolled her eyes and waved him over. Draco was already lying in bed, looking between Hermione and Harry. Hermione got in on the left side and Harry on the right. It was a tight fit, but they didn't care. 

Hermione cuddled against Draco, laid her head on his shoulder, and Draco put an arm around her. Harry started to lay next to Draco and just hold his hand while laying on his back. Draco was sure he couldn't sleep tonight, but when lying in his bed, there was something extremely comfortable about it. Soon he started to drift off between the two people who he knew would be standing with him no matter what. He couldn't control the feeling that he had never felt more loved.


	12. Chapter 12

In the next couple of weeks, Draco was a little disoriented, but Hermione and Harry weren't going to let him sulk. They were always by his side, the classes they did not share were a problem at first, but Theo and Blaise happily stepped in to tease Draco and tried to make him smile. In the evenings, Hermione would take him to the library to study together because she needed his help according to her, but he knew that was a terrible lie. She was the smartest witch alive of their generation. Harry would take him flying a lot and was sleeping in his bed almost every night. He didn't mind. He was glad for the distraction.

There had not yet been a repeat of the kiss Harry and he had shared, and he found that a little annoying. Hermione hadn't slept with them after that one night, but it had felt so good to wake up next to them both that day, so he hoped there would be more of that kind of nights and mornings. He wanted to kiss Hermione that night but didn't have had the courage. They were now sitting again in the library, but he couldn't focus on his work. He was watching the witch on the other side of the table. She was nibbling on her lip and muttering to herself. Draco found it endearing. Were Harry was becoming hot to look at with his black hair and startling green eyes, Hermione was becoming more beautiful every day. Her hair was still some days unruly and wild, but he didn't mind. She had it now tied back in a ponytail, and her hand that wasn't holding a quill was at her neck, her fingers tapping against it a little. Her eyes were focused on the parchment she was writing on. 

"Mione?" He started. '' mmmm?" She responded. Hermione didn't even look up. "Mione?" He said again while snapping his fingers in front of her. Now she was looking at him. Those brown eyes who had little golden flecks in them were truly enchanting. "Could we go back to my dorm?" He said carefully. She frowned a little but nodded and started to pack. 

She didn't know why he wanted to go back there, but she didn't mind. When they walked out of the library, he suddenly took her hand. She looked at their joint hands before looking up to his eyes. They hadn't shown anyone outside the three of them their affection for each other. "Do you mind?" He asked softly when he caught her looking. "No, I don't, I just didn't expect it." She said with a slight blush. 

They walked to the dorm and got in, not seeing the dark brown eyes that had followed them. When they arrived, they saw Harry talking to Jared. He looked up when the door opened, and they stepped in. Harry looked at their joint hands, and his eyebrows lifted a little, but he didn't say anything. Draco turned towards Hermione. "Mione, you said a couple of weeks ago that if we wanted to kiss you, we could do that. Do you still feel the same way?" He asked her. Harry was now very intrigued. He still hadn't kissed her yet either. Hermione looked at the boys and was relieved. She didn't want to push anyone. Nevertheless, she had been a little insecure because they had kissed each other and not her yet. 

"Yes, Draco, I really want to kiss both of you if you two are sure you want that too." She said with confidence. She didn't want any envy between them, so they needed to be sure. Draco smiled and took her hand before he leaned in and started kissing her. He was hesitant at first but deepened the kiss when she put her hand to his face. It felt good, where the kiss with Harry was like fire, the one with Hermione felt like lightning. It felt regenerating as if they were charged. When they broke apart, they smiled goofily at each other. 

Harry was still looking and walked to them. Draco and Hermione were a little nervous about how he would react. When he was standing in front of them, he grinned and put a hand against Hermione's face. "Do you mind if I kissed you?" He asked softly. Draco smirked he was curious about how it would feel to him and watched when Hermione smiled at Harry, and they leaned into each other. Draco didn't feel a pang of hurt as he would have expected. He just felt excited, a little too much when he felt a familiar twinge. 

Hermione was on cloud nine. She kissed not one but both of the boys she dreamed of. Both had felt great; it was a lot different than the sloppy kiss she had shared with her muggle neighbor the first week of last summer. When she pulled back from the kiss with Harry, she could only grin at them. It felt good to experience this with them. Harry and Draco both looked a little dazed, and she giggled. _Boys._

They walked Hermione back to the Gryffindor tower and said their goodbyes. When Harry and Draco were back at their dorm, they still were excited at what had happened. Harry fell on his bed and was laughing. Draco was smirking at him and was standing in front of Harry's bed. He touched Harry's hand, and Harry grabbed Draco's hand and pulled, causing Draco to fall on him. "You git, what did you do that for?" Draco asked the green-eyed boy. Who was still laughing, Harry put his hands on both sides of Draco's face, and Draco felt his breath hitch a little. Harry smirked at that and planted his lips firmly on Draco's. Draco was lost in the kiss. He could not think anymore and was feeling fantastic. They lay down there on Harry's bed, just kissing for a long while. 

A couple of days later, it was already time for the Christmas holiday. They were excited because it would be the first time at Potter Manor, and Harry couldn't wait. He was almost bouncing off the walls of the compartment they were seated. "Harry, if you are not going to calm down, I swear to God, I'm going to hex you." Hermione glared at the boy. "And I will help her and hold you down," Draco said, but it failed to do anything because he was smiling fondly at the boy. Hermione rolled her eyes from exasperation. 

They were picked up at the station by Sirius and Remus. Harry had been true to his word and wrote them each week. Even Draco and Hermione had written them in the past months. When they saw each other, it was easy to hug them. Sirius and Remus were the only persons who knew about the relationship between the three teens and thanked Godric; they did not judge them. Sirius was even giving Harry and Draco some advice, but that was embarrassing because he was also giving them sex advice. "Pup, you never know when you're gonna start, so you need to be prepared." He said with a straight face. When they were eating at a diner in London, Hermione could not hide her blush. Harry and Draco looked very uncomfortable, and Remus was just trying to hide his laugh. "Sirius, could you not?" Harry finally said after a way to long explanation about lubricant. Remus was almost choking now to hold in his laughter at the mortified faces of the three teens. 

After they got out of that awkward situation, they went to an apparition point so Sirius and Remus could take them to Potter Manor. When they arrived, Harry wanted to take off his glasses, only to realize he didn't wear them anymore, so he rubbed his eyes. The manor was huge. It was three stories high with light bricks and a blueish roof; it even had two towers on the sides. The windows above the front door were three stories high. You could see that there were balconies inside the hallway. It seemed to have at least three chimneys. Harry could not believe his eyes and just stared. Draco put his hand under Harry's chin to close his gaping mouth. "It even seems bigger than Malfoy manor." He said with a sad tone. Hermione, who also was gaping at the huge house, grabbed Draco's hand without looking. 

Sirius and Remus were smiling and ushered them inside. There they were greeted by at least twenty house elves who were almost crying of delight. "Master Harry Potter, it's- _sniff sniff -_ a great honor to meet you!" One of the elves said. Harry was a little awkward. "Uhh, thank you?" He said. He heard Draco groan, and he put his hand over his face. "You should not have said that," Draco grumbled. 

Hermione and Harry shot him confused looks before they heard the wailing from the twenty house-elves. All the elves were crying and thanking merlin that they had such a nice master. Sirius and Remus tried to calm them, but it wouldn't work. "Okay, so it really would be nice if you could stop crying and showed us the manor?" Harry tried, all the house elves stopped, and a few were trying to punish themself, but Harry ordered that they don't need to do that, which almost ended in more crying. 

When they were showed the house, Harry was speechless. He could have lived here, with his parents, if some madman didn't think Harry should be dead. Harry was getting angrier the more they walked; how dare Dumbledore have put him with his aunt and uncle. He could have had a normal wizard live with Sirius, who felt more and more like family every day. He could have lived in a normal house with a normal bedroom. 

Draco and Hermione felt the anger rushing off Harry and stopped walking. Sirius and Remus hadn't noticed yet and were walking away from them a little. "Harry? Are you okay? I can feel that something is wrong." Hermione said, carefully putting her hand on his arm. He shook her hand off because he did not want to lash out to her or Draco, but he really could not handle the rage at this moment. "No, I'm not okay. I could have been a normal boy. I could have lived here instead of in a home where they did not want me. The house-elves here love me already, and they just met me!" He was getting angrier with the minute, and his magic was slipping a little.

Draco felt the anger and resentment rolling with waves off from Harry. He could understand what Harry was going through. He felt the same every time he saw a happy family when the only thing he had was a father who did not want him for him, but because he could pass on his name. Hermione had a lovely family, so she could not understand everything the boys had gone through, but she had felt alone most of her childhood. Her parents were always working, and with sometimes accidental magic, a lot of children her age had avoided her. It didn't help that she always had a book glued to her face. Harry had been her first friend. 

Draco looked at Hermione and grabbed her hand with his right and grabbed with his left Harry's hand. Hermione did the same with her free hand. As soon as they were joined together, a wave of calm spread around them. All three closed their eyes, and there were flashes of memories as dreams floated in front of their eyes. They saw the three of them together in Diagon Alley getting ice cream, getting lunch in the Great hall at the Slytherin table. On a picnic blanket in the Astronomy tower, Draco and Harry kissing, Harry and Hermione kissing, together in bed, just cuddled together. It was calming, and the anger pulled back. Only when they wanted to pull apart, they heard a terrible high pitched scream and saw a flash of green light. All three of them gasped and fell back, looking terrified. 

"What the fuck was that?" Draco said the pleasant feeling they were having was ripped away. Only fear remained. Harry was turning white. He had heard this before he knew he had. They heard running, and Harry was pulled into a hug by Sirius. "Are you okay pup? We heard a scream! What happened?" 

"Did you hear it too?" Hermione asked in a soft voice. Sirius and Remus looked like it was a foolish question. "Yes, we heard it. It was loud enough for the whole house." Sirius snapped a little. Hermione tried not to feel angry about that. "It's just that we were showing each other memories to calm Harry down, but an awful memory pushed through. You should not have heard the memories we saw." She said. Remus and Sirius both looked shocked. 

"How did - could you - what the fuck?" Sirius finally said. The three teens looked at each other. They found out they could share memories a month ago when they were in Draco's and Harry's dorm. They were just lounging on a big couch. Hermione was lying with her head on Harry's lap and her feet on Draco's legs, reading a book. Draco just remembered something about potions and a joke Theo had shared. He put a hand on Harry's shoulder, and before he could tell them, they had a kind of vision where he showed them what had happened. When the image was over Hermione, fell out of their lap from shock. They did not know what had happened, and Hermione couldn't find anything in the library at school, but they tried it out a few more times because it felt good and unique. 

"We don't know how it happened. Or what it is exactly. We couldn't find anything in the books I have read. We just can.." Hermione said. This was not the usual way for her to deal with things. She liked her facts, but she really couldn't find anything about it. "We only can do it when we are touching each other, and it only works when all three of us are touching. We can't do it with just two of us." Harry filled in. Still a little shaken off the memory. Remus gasped and looked at Sirius. "You know what that can mean Sirius..." Sirius looked stricken. "Pup, I think we need to talk now," Sirius said slowly. The three teens were confused but got up and walked with them to a large dining room.

"Okay, so what I am going to tell you, you can't tell anyone. It's a family secret of the house of Black. The only reason I am going to tell you is because apparently, you three are in the middle of it." He looked at the teens with a stern look, they looked like they just were caught with their hand in a cookie jar, but Sirius continued. "The Black family has just like every other pureblood family, strong family magic. Every family keeps it to themselves. Harry, if you are done with all the tomes in the vaults, you will probably find the Potter family magic. I don't know what it is, so I can't tell you. The Black family magic is that their bonding magic is the strongest. This can be in marriage, friendship, family, and even magic. If you use bonding magic as a Black, nobody can penetrate that. Now a lot of bonding is strong, but with the Black's it's like it can't be broken. I always thought it was a curse -" He fell silent for a moment, and Remus put his hand on his arm. "-because the Black's were always on the side of the Dark Lord or other dark wizards. A lot of my relatives bonded with the dark and couldn't break from it. I didn't want to follow in their footsteps." He swallowed hard and looked at Harry. "When I started Hogwarts, I met your father. Because of his friendship, I bonded with him. He was like my brother. When he died, I was lost, my bonding broke because of his death, and I almost couldn't live without him. That's one of the reasons I blame myself so much for what happened." He fell silent again, lost in his grief over his fallen friend. 

"Sirius, I don't want to sound rude, but we don't understand what that means for us," Hermione said after a few moments. She was touched by the story but couldn't understand why he was telling this. Draco nodded in agreement. "I was coming to that," Sirius said softly. "When you are bonded as a Black, you get special powers to ensure the bonding, if you are bonded with a person you even can force them without knowing it, to have-" he swallowed. "-a special attraction to you." He stopped and looked at Remus, who only smiled fondly. Draco had gone rigid. "This doesn't have to be romantic,-" he added quickly "- it can be friendly, it's just what the Black wants to feel, and if the feeling is reciprocated, the bond becomes stronger it means that you can show them more than just their eyes see for themself. That's why I think you can show each other your memories." When he finished, he looked at the teens. Harry and Hermione were stunned. They didn't know anything about family magic at all. Draco was avoiding everyone's gaze and stood to walk out of the door. As soon as he was walking away, Hermione and Harry followed him. 

"Draco, please stop!" Hermione said after five minutes of following him. They still didn't know where they were going at all, so they were already lost in the big mansion. Draco spun around. "Why are you following me? You heard what he said. You could be forced to feel this way. It's better if I go away." He finished in a whisper. Harry scoffed. "You really have a big ego, don't you Black." Draco looked up incredulously. "What the fuck Potter, why would you say that?" He snarled back. "Because you're acting like an idiot," Harry said while playing it off as he didn't care by checking his fingernails. 

Hermione knew what Harry was doing and smiled. "Draco, what Harry's trying to say, even if he's an ass about it, is that we already started to feel close to you before you changed your name to Black and activated that magic. Yes, it's clear now that the three of us are bonded, but like Sirius said, if it's reciprocated, it becomes stronger. That's why we feel so strongly about each other." Hermione said in a matter of fact voice. "Mione. It's just-you don't- you two didn't even have a choice anymore if I understand correctly." Draco said while looking down at his feet. "And maybe we don't need a choice," Harry said softly. 

Draco looked up at the green-eyed boy. "What do you mean?" He asked. Harry scoffed again, earning an elbow in his ribs by Hermione. "I already dreamed about you before we even met in the summer again. When I was locked up at the Dursley's, I dreamed of you, Hermione, and a big black dog. We all know who the black dog is now, and I dreamed of kissing Hermione because of how I feel about her. When I dreamed of you, I was following you, the feeling I got was that you were the one I needed to be with. Back then, I even knew I needed to be with you, and I still thought you were a git back then," Harry finished, penetrating Draco with an unrelenting gaze. 

Draco swallowed, and Hermione sighed. "O for Godric's sake." She murmured. She walked to Draco and kissed him full on the lips. When she pulled back, he had a small smile on his face. Hermione slapped him on his arm. "Hé! No need to manhandle me Mione." He said with a smirk. "Don't be stupid again then!" She said with exasperation. Harry started to laugh and also walked to Draco and kissed him. Someone scraped their throat behind them, and the teens sprung apart. 

"Well, if you are all okay, could we go back to get something to eat?" Sirius said with a smirk at them. When they walked back, Sirius grabbed Draco's shoulder. "I'm sorry Draco, I should have told you this before. I really didn't know that this would happen so quickly. Most Black's have this bonding only when married or when they are worshipping a dark witch or wizard; also, I have never heard of bonding with two people." There was a little concern but also fondness in his eyes, and Draco relaxed a little. "They both mean a lot to me." He whispered to Sirius. "I know, I saw how you looked at them, and you also mean a lot to them. What you also probably should know is that you will do anything to protect them. Be careful, okay?" Sirius said while squeezing his shoulder a little before he let go. Draco only nodded before they went back to the dining room. 

* * *

Harry was turning in his sleep; he was having a nightmare. The memory of the scream and green light was torturing him every night since it had happened. _"Take Harry and run!"_ Harry gasped and bolted upright only to hit his head against something. "OW! Bloody hell Potter, that hurt." Draco was lying on the floor next to Harry's bed, he was clutching his nose, and blood was visible. Harry rubbed his head. The collision had hurt him too. "Wanker, what were you doing?" He asked the blond wizard while helping him up. "You were having a nightmare. I could feel it in my room." Draco said, shrugging feigning indifference. 

Harry fixed Draco's nose with his wand. "It was that memory again, wasn't it?" Draco said softly. Harry just nodded, and Draco shooed him aside and got in bed with him and put his arms around Harry. After a few moments, the door opened, and Hermione slipped in. "I could feel something had happened. This bonding is really weird." She said. The boys nodded at that. She saw the boys lying in bed and walked over to the other side, got in, and cuddled against Harry. They were asleep again within minutes. 

When Hermione woke up the next morning, she felt that someone was pressed against her back and could feel an arm around her waist and another hand against her side. She looked down and saw that it was Harry's arm and Draco's hand. They were sleeping spooning her, and she had never felt safer before. She tried to get out, but Harry pulled her back. "Mione stay." He whispered in her ear. His voice was a little husky, and she felt shivers down her spine. She wiggled her butt a little to find a better position. She could feel that Harry was trying to pull back a little, but he was sandwiched between Draco and Hermione, so he couldn't get away. When Hermione put her butt back against Harry's pelvis, she could feel the excitement of Harry. She flushed scarlet. 

Harry groaned softly. _Yes, absolutely too many hormones in the early morning._ "I should get going to take a shower. I need one." She said and started to get out of the bed. "Yeah, me to," Harry said with an awkward chuckle. "Me three.." Said Draco, who just had woken up with Harry's ass pressed against his pelvis. When he looked up, he saw Hermione get out and that her sleeping shirt was up a little so you could see her stomach. There were small freckles on it, and it was smooth. He groaned at the feeling that his manhood was growing and pressing against his clothes and that Harry was still lying with his ass pressed against him. He must have felt him right now. Draco was turning red in the cheeks, and Hermione saw that he was looking at her. She walked back to the bed and kissed both boys on the cheek before turning away to go back to her bedroom. She really needed a moment for herself now. 

When she was back in her room, she still felt hot from the boys and a little agitated. She needed a release. She got into the bathroom and turned on the shower. She wanted to place a silencing charm on the door, but she could not practice magic out of Hogwarts. The water was hot enough, and she got in the shower. She purred at the contact of the hot water against her skin. 

Hermione put her hand through her hair and massaged her head a little. One hand went down to her breast, and she squeezed a little before her hand traveled more south. Hermione knew what she liked, and it wasn't the first time she did this, of course. When her fingers slipped between her folds, she started to massage her clit. She could still feel Harry and Draco's arms around her and could remember the feeling of Harry's manhood pressed against her bum. 

Her breaths became more ragged. _"Mione stay."_ The husky voice of Harry sounded in her head. She moaned because of the memory. She felt Draco's lips on hers in her fantasy and touched her lips with her fingers. The pressure building in her stomach was causing her to see little stars beneath her eyelids. With two more strokes and her little fingertip, she came undone under the shower. Her legs were shaking a little, but she stayed upright. She finished showering and put on some clothes. 

When she came back to her bedroom, she heard knocking. "Who is it?" Hermione asked. "It's us Hermione, could you please let us in?" Hermione frowned and opened the door to see Draco and Harry standing with bright red faces. "Is something wrong?" She asked carefully. "Uh, can we come in please, Mione?" Draco said without looking at her. She did not like this. _What the hell was wrong?_ She let them in, and they took a seat, still looking very uncomfortable. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Okay, out with it. What has happened? I just left your room. So if you two idiots couldn't stay out of-" She was interrupted on her rant by Harry, who stood up and walked to her. He took her hands in his and whispered in her ear. "We could feel what you were doing just now." Hermione was mortified. She wanted the ground to swallow her now.

"What?" She squeaked. "How? That-O my God." Her face was bright red, and she tried to turn away, but Harry held on to her hands. "Harry, can I please lock myself up in the bathroom and never come out now?" She said and tried again to get her hands back but without much luck. 

"Mione, it doesn't matter, really, I mean, we all do this, and this is the first time we felt this happening. So please don't think of us as perverts." Draco said while still sitting on the couch. Harry nodded along. "And we need to give you a heads up. Because it was a very intense feeling." Harry said, without looking at them. Draco groaned a little and threw his head back. "Fuck yes, it was intense." He said. Hermione let out a nervous chuckle. "So, you two liked it?" Hermione said, while still feeling a little worried. 

Two heads snapped up to look at her. "Hell yes, we did." Harry breathed. Hermione smirked and kissed him. "Okay, thank you for the heads up. Apparently, we are a lot more bonded than we thought. We need to discuss this with Sirius, yes I know how weird that is, but we need to know more, don't you think?" They both nodded a little reluctant. "Now, go back to your rooms and take a shower." She said with a wink to them. 

They were gaping at her, and she giggled when she shooed them out. Draco turned at the last moment to give a kiss to Hermione. She sighed against him. His lips were so soft. "You are amazing, do you know that?" He said when they pulled apart. She smirked again and pushed him out of the door. "Don't forget it." Was the only thing she said before closing the door. 

She fell on her bed, curious about what she would feel when the boys were taking care of themselves. After a minute, she could feel passion coursing through her, warming her whole body. She closed her eyes and could see visions of them kissing and heard panting breaths just as if they were right next to her. She could understand why the boys liked it, and it was intense to experience it. She didn't mind this bond at all.


	13. Chapter 13

Christmas was a nice get together, they had been to the Granger's for dinner, and Harry had again thanked Hermione's parents for everything with the help of the escape from the Dursleys. It was also hilarious to see Draco interact with the muggle parents. He really didn't know everything in their house and was utterly entranced when he saw the television. "It's like wizard pictures, but they have sound!" He exclaimed one moment, which of course, resulted in laughter from both Hermione and Harry. They did not yet tell Hermione's parents about their relationship. 

The rest of the holiday they spend in the Potter manor. Hermione had found the library and was ecstatic by the sight of all the books. She barely got out, only to spend time with Harry and Draco and to eat. Harry and Draco had gone flying a lot and were practicing for the Slytherin - Gryffindor match in January. They both were very competitive, which resulted in a lot of banter between them. "Really Potter, the only reason you're faster than me is because of that broom," Draco said with a smirk after having lost to Harry with just a hair difference. 

Harry scoffed. "Black, when are you going to admit you are just jealous of my ability, I mean, I'm faster, more flexible, and people actually want me to win." He said while making a face. Draco just punched him in the shoulder. "AUW! Ref! That's a fault!" Harry said with a grin. Hermione, who was the 'referee' but really just was reading on a warmed bench with hot chocolate, looked up. She gave them both a look that silenced them. After a moment, Hermione started to laugh. It was so easy to tease them. 

The day before the new year, Sirius and Remus took them apart. "Pup, Draco, Hermione, we need to talk about Dumbledore, he hasn't shown his face yet, but that is going to happen," Sirius said. They knew this was going to happen and were curious about what Sirius and Remus had come up with. "We want you three to take extra defense training. With spells and protection. Draco, have you already tutored Harry for Lordship?" Draco nodded. 

"Excellent. Harry, you can hire a tutor for extra lessons from outside the school. Normally, parents hire tutors for their children, but you can hire someone for yourself and everyone you want to attend because you are a Lord." Sirius said. Harry nodded at that. "Okay, Remus, you were going to be a teacher at Hogwarts. Can I hire you to tutor us?" Harry asked the werewolf. 

Remus grinned. "Yes, I am qualified to be a teacher. You can hire me as a tutor. I can teach you two nights a week, and on Saturday, if you wish, you will have enough time for your regular classes and Quidditch. Off course, we will not meet on days you have a Quidditch game." He said with a smile when Draco and Harry started to protest. 

"That's settled then. You will tutor us three, maybe even more, but I will ask our friends when we are back at school first if they want to join." Harry said as he was thinking of Ginny, the twins, Theo, Blaise, and Neville, they had been good friends these past couple of months. They were regularly sitting at the Gryffindor table or Slytherin table. However, not so much at Slytherin because Pansy was giving Hermione the evil eye constantly. They even had some kind of study group. With Hermione and Draco the smartest of their year, Harry had a great example and got his grades up, plus he had much more concentration. He even was getting better in Potions. Snape also insulted him a lot less. He still did it, of course, but less.

"I also want you to study Occlumency. Dumbledore is a skilled Legilimens, and it would make a lot of sense if he would try to gain information by you that way or plant something to manipulate you." Sirius said with a stern expression. Harry saw that Draco had paled a little. The boy was already to white, so he looked like a sheet now. 

"Draco, are you okay?" Harry asked. "I already know a little Occlumency. Snape has taught me. The tutorings stopped when I ran from home off course, and it was not strong enough to keep my father out." Draco told the group. Remus and Sirius growled. "I don't want Snivellus to teach you, and it's horrible your father did that to you. If he forced you with Legilimens, that can hurt a lot and break down the original defense of your Occlumency. It wouldn't help anything." Remus explained. 

"I am also skilled, so you can 'hire' me as a tutor," Sirius told the teens. "It's regular that heirs of the old houses train in this as protection for the family secrets." He explained to them. 

They would have occlumens training on Sunday, defense training on Monday and Thursday evenings, and Saturday unless there was Quidditch. Harry was excited to see his uncles more often. Sirius promised that he would travel with Remus to help him with the Defense training. 

"What about professor McGonagall? She needs to be informed, doesn't she? She is now Headmistress, does she need to permit this?" Hermione asked. Remus nodded at her question. "Yes, she needs to give permission, but I don't think that will be a problem. I will write her a letter. Then she knows what is going to happen in the new year", Sirius said. 

A couple of days later, they were traveling back to Hogwarts. They had their own compartment when Blaise rushed in. "Draco, you need to come now." The intense look he was giving the blonde was convincing enough to go with him without a thought. Harry and Hermione went with them just in case they needed more help. They entered another carriage, and Blaise got in a compartment with shut blinders. On the couch was Theo, completely ashen in the face and clearly in pain. 

Draco rushed to his side and started checking what was wrong. Hermione saw Theo's hands and feet shaking and new it had something to do with the crucio curse. If you were too long exposed, it could damage your nerves. _That asshole! His own son!_ Hermione thought. She ran back to their compartment for the nerve tonic she had stashed in there. She returned and asked Harry to perform a pain-killing spell on Theo so she could give the nerve tonic to him. 

After an hour, Theo stopped shaking and calmed down. Draco was still on his knees at Theo's head, soothing him. Harry and Hermione went back to their compartment so Theo could have some privacy. When they were back, Harry excuses himself to change into his school robes. Hermione started reading when the compartment again opened. She looked up to see Crabbe and Goyle standing there. The boys were huge and wore scowls. Their eyes looked glazed over. Fear crept in Hermione's spine, and she reached for her wand. Goyle sprang at her and knocked her down. She wanted to scream, but he put his hand on her mouth. Crabbe had shut the door, locked, and silenced it. 

"We are going to show you what happens when you tarnish a pureblood heir. You don't deserve him, mudblood!" Crabbe snarled at her. Goyle still had his hand over her mouth, but he released it when the compartment was silent for the rest of the train. He held her down, and Crabbe started to tear away her robes. She screamed and yelled at them to stop, but nothing helped. She felt the tears streaming over her cheeks and couldn't do anything to throw them off. 

She was almost stripped bare and felt one of the boys pinch her nipple. It hurt, and she screamed again. At that moment, the compartment door flew open, and Crabbe and Goyle were thrown off her. She felt that she was enveloped in a tight hug and covered by someone's robes. She didn't register what exactly was happening. She knew in her mind that she was in shock and couldn't do anything at the moment but sob. 

* * *

When Harry was almost finished with redressing, he felt fear in his bones, he couldn't place it at first, but after just a moment, he knew it had something to do with Hermione. He ran back to the compartment to find it locked. He pounded on the door and screamed for Hermione, but there was no response. He felt Draco behind him. "What is wrong? I can feel something is happening!" He said to Harry only to see that Harry was panicking and pounding on the compartment's door. He grabbed his wand and started to tear away the protections on the door. The first that fell away was the silencing spell. 

They both felt their stomach drop when they could hear Hermione scream from the inside of the compartment. In the hallway, people started to peek out of their compartments because of the noise. The Weasley twins ran towards them when they heard Hermione, and within seconds the door was open. They saw Crabbe and Goyle trying to force themselves on Hermione. Fred and George pulled them forcefully away and started hitting them. Harry and Draco rushed to Hermione. Draco pulled off his robes and put it on Hermione. Harry held her close and put his hand in her hair and started to stroke it. 

Harry saw the look on her face, and the fear she must have felt rolled off her in waves. She was silently sobbing against his shoulder. He looked around to see the face of Draco completely ashen at the thought of what could have happened. Harry put Hermione in a one-armed hug and reached for Draco to join them. As soon as they had made contact, a warm feeling rushed through him, and he knew it was the comforting feeling of the bond they had. 

Behind them, Crabbe and Goyle were unconscious after beating to a pulp by Fred and George, who were heavily breathing and had now aimed their wands at the two boys. If they would wake up, it wouldn't be for long if they could help it. Hermione started to stir against Harry, and he pulled away a little to look her in the eyes. You could see that the comforting feeling had helped, and she was getting herself back together. 

"I think they were under the imperius curse. How they talked when-when attacking me and looked at me as if they didn't see me at all." Hermione said in a soft voice. Harry and Draco looked at each other before Draco started talking. "Love, you do not need to stand up for them, what they did-" Hermione look silenced them. She looked furious. "I will not stand up for them after what they did to me now, but I really think it wasn't them. Someone else is trying to hurt me. They said I didn't deserve to be with you, Draco. Someone knows something about us, and apparently, they don't think I deserve you because I am a mudblood," She started in a rage but ended in a whisper. 

Draco was shocked and took her chin in his hand to look in her eyes. "If someone doesn't deserve someone, it's me deserving neither you nor Harry. You are too good for this world." He said it with such sincerity that tears had started again in Hermione's eyes. "Mione, you are not going to get rid of us. We love you." Harry said, and he kissed the side of her head. The train started to slow down. Hermione got up and put on Draco's robes better so no one could see her destroyed clothes beneath. When they got off the train, Harry found Hagrid and told them in short what had happened. Hagrid was livid and got on the train to gather the boys in question. 

Draco guided Hermione to an empty carriage and climbed in. They waited for Harry to ride back to the castle. When they arrived, McGonagall was waiting for them. Harry explained again what had happened and told the Headmistress that they would get back to their dorms and that Hermione would stay with them tonight. The Headmistress was not pleased with the last statement, but let it slide for now. She told them they needed to meet her the next day in her office, and she went to retrieve the perpetrators. 

Harry and Draco took Hermione back to their dorms and put her in Draco's bed, fully clothed. She didn't react to any of it. She just stared at the ceiling at first. They climbed in bed with her, and both hugged her tight. "We are never going to let you out of our sight again Mione, if someone is trying to hurt you, they are trying to hurt us," Harry said with a kiss to her head. 

She felt Draco nodding and felt rage boiling in her stomach before sitting upright, startling the two boys. "I can take care of myself! I'm not weak, nor am I ever going to be in this kind of position again." She said with an air of finality. Draco put an arm around her shoulders.

"Mione, we do not think you're weak. We just want you to be safe and protect you were we can." He said, and Harry took her hand in his. "Sorry if I have insulted you, Mione. I know you can take care of yourself. But like Draco said. We want you to be safe." Hermione relaxed a little at their confession and started to lay back down. Only to realize she still had all her clothes. She grabbed her wand and vanished all her clothes but her bra and panties. Draco and Harry gasped, they had not expected this, and it was the first time they had seen her this naked. She lay back down and put her arms out so Harry and Draco could snuggle up to her sides. She thought she should feel different after what had happened and that another girl probably didn't want to be touched by a man for at least a year. But Hermione only could feel comfort with Draco and Harry and only wanted to be with them and feel their bond swirling around them. 

* * *

The next morning they got to breakfast, Hermione in the middle had her arms linked with the boys on her sides. When they entered the Great hall, it immediately fell silent. Of course, everybody bloody knew already what had happened. Hermione was nervous and just wanted to be seated. When they turned to the Gryffindor table, she saw that Theo and Blaise stood from the Slytherin table and followed the three teens. When they got seated next to each other, Theo and Blaise took seats opposite them. Theo stretched his arm and took Hermione's hand in his. 

"Thank you for yesterday Hermione. I probably would still have been in pain if it weren't for your quick thinking. I know you can look after yourself, but so that you know, if I see those big buffoons, they will be hexed, and it won't be a month before they resurface." He said, and Blaise nodded next to him. She felt grateful for her Slytherin friends. She had never expected to have them. Draco also looked thankful to his two housemates. 

When breakfast was over, they went to the Headmistress office like they have been told the day before. When they entered, Fred and George were already there. "Miss Granger, Mister Black, and Mister Potter thank you for joining us today. I just want to express my deepest condolences of what has happened. It should not have happened, and I am ashamed that it has. Misters Weasley, I want to thank you two for standing up for Miss Granger, even if it was with violence. I don't like it, but I need to give you detention for the violence part. So you will have detention this Saturday with me, but I want to give you 25 house points each. You are dismissed." Fred and George merely nodded, winked at the trio, and got out of the office. McGonagall waved her wand, and three chairs stood in front of her. "Please take a seat. I want to tell you what has happened yesterday after you went to bed."

The three teens sat down. "When Mister Goyle and Crabbe went to the Hospital Wing, they were thoroughly interviewed. They didn't recollect what has happened-" Hermione put both her hands out for the Draco and Harry to take. She needed their presence. "-however, we didn't believe it. So we called professor Snape who is a Legilimens. He entered their minds and found out they had been under the imperius curse. When we told them what had happened, they did express their distress and apologies. They did not control their actions; that's why they will not be expelled." McGonagall finished with a sigh. 

"I already had my suspicions, madam. Their eyes were glazed over, and how they talked was not their usual way. They aren't friendly to me, but they had never before expressed such hatred as yesterday. I can forgive them. Are there any leads to who did this to them?" Hermione asked the Headmistress. "Not yet, unfortunately, but it is safe to say that you are in danger, Miss Granger. This was a hit on your persona. Do you have any idea why this happened?" 

Hermione sighed and told McGonagall what they said before they started. She also told her about Draco and Harry and that they were together. McGonagall gasped at that information. "You mean you have formed a triad?" Hermione merely nodded. "What does that mean professor?" Harry asked. 

"It means mister Potter that if the love between you three is equal, you can have a lot of power from your bond, but since you haven't bonded yet, this isn't-" She started, but when she saw the look on the three teens she understood. "You have bonded! But how? That's great magic and can't be done without the right rituals. You need to explain this as soon as possible." The three looked at each other, and Hermione and Harry looked towards Draco. 

"It happened since I am a Black. I can't tell you the details because of family magic, but we are bonded. It isn't an official bond, but we can feel the magic from the bond. We can calm each other down and show each other memories. We also can feel the distress of others like yesterday but also other emotions. I think it started when we started to date, we kept it private, but after the first weeks, my feelings became stronger towards Harry and Hermione. It feels like they complete me." Draco finished in a whisper and looked down. Hermione squeezed his hand. 

McGonagall made a little noise in her throat. It sounded like a repressed sob. "This changes everything. I think we need to ensure Miss Granger is safe first. As Mister Potter is already out of the Gryffindor tower, I think this will also be a good start for Miss Granger. Also, if you three are bonded in this triad, you need to be close to each other to strengthen this bond." The three teens were startled and looked at the elderly witch with confusion. 

"What do you mean, madam?" Draco asked. "Because you are bonded with your magic, this means the bonding already took place, it may not be official in writing, but it looks like it cannot be broken, not without a lot of pain for everybody involved. So what I mean is that you three will get your own domain in the castle. Since Mister Potter and Mister Black are already sharing a dorm, we will expand that with a room for you, Miss Granger. You will have separate rooms, is that clear?" She looked sternly at the three teens who blushed instantly and nodded. 

"I will also write to an acquaintance of mine. She is an expert on bonding magic. I want to know what we're dealing with. If I know when she can come, I will let you know. You are dismissed." The teens stood, but before they went out, Harry turned. "Madam, Sirius has written you about the tutorship, right?" He asked McGonagall. "Yes, I have received his owl, and I'm happy with the initiative. I have already agreed to the proposal." She answered. Harry nodded and got out of her office. The three teens were thrilled. Even if it had a terrible reason, they would be together at night. This was a win for them. 

Harry and Draco kept their word and never left Hermione alone when walking through the corridors that day. She was a little annoyed at them for this, but she could understand where they were doing it. It made her feel special. 

They got a lot of looks when they walked, mainly because they walked hand in hand, Hermione in the middle, Harry on her right, and Draco on her left. They had been dating for almost two months, but still, nobody at school knows about them, only their closest friends. When they were at the dorm that once belonged to only Draco, they saw an extra door with Hermione's name. She pulled herself free from Harry and Draco's hands and went to take a look in her new room. 

All her clothes and stuff were already in it. Her books even had been put on the shelves; she also had her own bathroom. She grinned; this was nice to have. She felt arms around her from behind, and Harry hugged her close and pressed a kiss to her head. "I had not expected this, but it's like Voldemort doesn't exist, and we are living in a dream." Hermione slapped him soft on the arm. "Don't be a sap Harry, Drakey! Have you seen this?" 

Draco groaned. He hated the name, but Hermione laughed, and that was worth it. Harry smiled at Draco when he stood next to them. Draco leaned in close and kissed Harry on his mouth. He lingered for a moment before turning to Hermione to kiss her. 

"So do you two want to tell the school what we have? Because I don't think it's going to be secret for long if we keep walking hand in hand and Merlin do I wanna kiss you two outside our dorms." Harry said with a smirk. Hermione and Draco pulled apart and looked at him with smiles of their own. "We will get shit about it, but I couldn't care less if I have you two with me," Draco said with a shrug. Hermione nibbled her lip for a moment before she spoke. "We will need to make sure who is after me. I think that with a public display, we are going to draw them out. They already think I am with Draco, that's why they targeted me. I don't want them to hurt Harry or me again, but they will try, and I will not sit by and let it happen," She said with determination. 

"Than let's draw tho's fuckers out," Harry said with an evil smirk on his lips.


	14. Chapter 14

A day, that's how long it took for everyone in the castle to know what had happened on the train. A day and everyone knew that Hermione was attacked by Crabbe and Goyle. Everyone also knew they were under the curse. But that didn't make them any less of a target. Some people still didn't like that the muggle-born witch was best friends with the boy who lived and the boy with the troubled past, but the assault was something everybody took offense to. Crabbe and Goyle were sent home for homeschooling because of the hexes and curses they got every day. 

The following week nobody saw Hermione by herself. She was either with Draco or Harry. If they were in classes without her, Blaise or Theo would step in. Blaise proceeded to flirt continuously with her earning a lot of elbows in the ribs from Theo, Draco, or Harry if they had heard it. 

Then on a regular Wednesday after the Slytherin Quidditch practice, all hell broke loose. Hermione wandered to the pitch in a Slytherin scarf when the team landed. She sauntered up to Draco with a determined look. When she was close enough en Draco saw her, he took a step in her direction with a faux questionable look. "Mione, what are you-" she broke him off with a heated kiss. The whole quidditch pitch gasped, and you could hear a yell of indignance from the stands. "You flew well today," Hermione said to Draco when they split. And she walked back to the castle without another word. Leaving an entire Quidditch team with shocked expressions.

In the corridors, she strolled to the library. _Every moment now._ She thought. She heard a rustle a few meters back and turned towards the sound. "Someone there?" Hermione asked when she saw no one. She turned around again to take another step before she heard a snarl. "Why? Why would he choose you?" Hermione spun around to see her accuser. Her wand ready in her hand. She looked in the red-rimmed eyes of Pansy Parkinson. 

"How could you take him? Just like that? I was trained to make him notice me from birth!" She snarled at the witch. Hermione felt a tinge of guilt and sadness towards Pansy. "He needed to notice me! Even when he was disowned, I would be there for him. But he wouldn't even look at me! Even when you were almost defiled, he wouldn't look at me!" Her voice had risen with the words to a near screech.

Hermione took a step back. She had not expected this. Yes, she had expected some pureblood prejudice, but not such hatred from another girl. "It was you who send them?" She asked softly. Pansy blanched. "Of course not Granger. I couldn't do that kind of magic. I just got a letter that something would happen, and I needed to be ready to step in, but I don't know who send it." Pansy said with a sneer on her face. "Why are you doing this now then, Pansy? What is wrong?" Hermione pleaded. She needed to know why she was followed by this witch. 

"I saw you kiss him!" Pansy screeched again. Tears welling in and flooding her eyes. "You don't understand Granger, I don't care about you or your torrid love affair. It's just that it isn't me! I can't stand to go back home and see the disappointment again. Never again. I can't go back to that." Pansy started to raise her wand, trembling all the way. "Pansy, please, you don't want to do this." Hermione pleaded again. 

Pansy seemed to hesitate, "No, I don't, but if I don't, I can't go home. My mother-" Her voice faltered, and tears were streaming down her face. Hermione took a careful step towards Pansy and reached out her hand. Pansy blanched and took one step back. "Pansy, we can help you; Draco is free of his parents. We can help you too!" She said. She could hear the rustle of robes next to her. Pansy looked at her as if she had grown two heads. 

"Why would you want to help me? I only have been horrible to you." Pansy said in a soft voice. 

"Because I believe in second chances," Hermione replied and again reached out to Pansy. Pansy looked at her hand and sighed. "You promise I don't have to go back?" She whispered. "If you don't want to, you don't have to," Hermione replied. Pansy scoffed. "I don't, only - I will have nothing, but if I don't have to see my mother again-" She said and looked down at the floor. "Does that make me a horrible person?" She asked in a whisper. 

"No, it doesn't. I am sorry you had to go through this alone, but if you let me, us, help you, you will not be alone anymore." Hermione said, and she threw her arm around Pansy. She didn't know if the boys would help her, but she liked to think they would. Pansy looked at Hermione; she was shaking a little. Hermione led them back to her dorm. She looked over her shoulder to see Harry's floating head with a smile before he drew his hood back up and disappeared again.

* * *

Back in her dorm, she led Pansy towards her bedroom. She knew Harry would inform Draco over what had happened, and they would stay away for now. Pansy looked up when she saw the other door with Harry and Draco's names but didn't say anything. Hermione pulled Pansy to her bed. "First things first, are you in love with Draco?" Hermione asked. An involuntary snort escaped Pansy's lips before she clasped her hands over her mouth. Hermione raised an eyebrow. 

"No, he is like my brother. We grew up together. And-" She stopped suddenly. "And you don't like boys?" Hermione finished. Pansy eyes bulged out. "How did you know that!? I told nobody!" She screeched. Hermione sighed. Pansy was going to give her a headache if she would keep doing that. "You didn't have to tell anybody. I saw how you looked at Daphne if you thought nobody was looking." 

Pansy looked like she was going to be sick. "O my Salazar. Do you think she noticed too? Because that would be awful!" She said with her hands on her face. "I really don't know, you should ask her," Hermione said while shrugging. Again a snort escaped Pansy, and Hermione started to smile. How completely unexpected was this? "You are a lot more like-able like this." She teased while bumping her shoulder against the other witch. 

Pansy looked up to Hermione. "I really didn't see this coming. I really thought I would hex you in the halls." She said with a shrug and guilty look. "I expected that. That's why Harry was invisible in the hallway to disarm you if you tried anything. We just expected that the one who put the curse on Crabbe and Goyle to follow me, but you already told me that you didn't do that." Hermione said. 

Pansy looked a little hurt but nodded. "I really didn't do that. I would never want anyone to live through that. I was hurt that you could easily be around Draco, Theo, and Blaise, even Potter! I was friends with Theo, Blaise, and Draco, but when my mother started to push me to let Draco court me, they distanced themselves. I can't blame them, but it still hurt, you know?" Pansy said in a whisper. 

"I understand. They are really great to have around. The boys can make you laugh easily. We all need that from time to time," Hermione said. Pansy leaned against Hermione. "Yeah, I know. Do you really meant it that you would help me?" Pansy asked. 

"Yes, of course. If you don't want to go back home, you can stay with me, but I should warn you that my parents will adopt you if you are nice." Hermione said with a smile on her face. Pansy scrunched up her nose. "Your parents are muggles, right?" Hermione stiffened a little. "Yes, they are. Is that a problem?" She asked carefully. "No, I only don't know anything about muggles, but my mom would have a heart attack when she hears about it. Because of that, it would already be amazing to meet them." Pansy said with a smirk. 

Hermione started laughing and started to lay back on the bed, pulling Pansy with her. Together they were comfortable on Hermione's bed just talking about nothings when they heard a knock on the door. "Come in!" Hermione called, still lying on her bed with Pansy. Draco and Harry walked in and took in the scene with worried expressions. Hermione started to giggle. "Pansy, please tell Draco that you mean no harm to me or to his virtue." 

Pansy rolled her eyes. "Draco, I only would want to kiss you if you had boobs." She said with a scrunched up nose, and Hermione burst out laughing. Draco scoffed and looked offended. "Who the fuck are you, and what did you do to Pansy?" Pansy started to laugh, and Harry joined in.

Hermione pushed herself off the bed and walked towards her boys and kissed them on the lips. "You're both cute when you worry, but I got this handled. I'm going to have a girl's night with Pansy, Ginny, and my old dorm mates in the Gryffindor tower. Don't wait up." She told them she took Pansy's hand and walked out of the door, leaving behind two flabbergasted boys. 

"So, you are with both of them?" Pansy started, sounding confused while walking with Hermione towards the Gryffindor Tower. "Yes, do you have any problem with that?" Hermione asked. "No, but just so you know, that's pretty impressive," Pansy said with a smirk. When they walked into the Gryffindor tower, everybody stopped talking and looked towards Hermione and especially Pansy. Hermione didn't let it border her. "Gin! Ready for girls night? We have a guest extra." 

Ginny looked up from her game and shrugged. "I also invited someone. Luna, you ready?" The very blonde witch opposite of Ginny looked with a dreamy expression towards the other two witches and spoke with air in her voice. "Yes, will we go hunting for nargles?" She asked. Ginny snorted. "No, we will braid our hairs, talk about nothing, and paint our nails." She pointed out. "Okay, that sounds fun." The blond witch responded. They followed Hermione towards her old dorm. 

In her old dorm, Lavender and Parvati were already waiting. When Pansy walked in, they looked worried. "I am not here to hex you all, I just want to have fun tonight. Because tomorrow I probably will be disinherited." Pansy said. Shaking just a little. Lavender, Parvati, and Ginny all looked like they were slapped in the face. Lavender closed her mouth and started talking. "Well, we certainly can have fun. What do you know of fashion?" And just like that, it was as if Pansy always belonged.

* * *

"Okay, so people now know about you Draco, and Hermione, but how are we going to let them know about the two of you and me?" Harry asked while playing with Jared. Hermione was browsing through Draco's books in their common room, and Draco was playing with a snitch, letting it go and catching it before it got away to far.

"Well, it's going to seem weird if I also start kissing you on the pitch," Hermione said, not looking away from the books. Harry rolled his eyes. "Yes, that's not going to end well, because everybody will first think you are playing us, and that could be bad for you." Harry let his snake go, and Jared slithered away back to his terrarium. 

Draco let out a sigh. "I don't think the teachers are going to appreciate it if I start snogging you in front of them." Harry and Hermione blanched at the thought. 

"Could you imagine Snape's face, though?" Harry said with a smirk. Draco let out a snort. "Well, my father would love to hear about that." Hermione and Harry both started to laugh at that. 

When the door opened, it revealed Theo, Blaise, Ginny, and Pansy. "Finally, some Slytherins!" Draco exclaimed. Ginny scoffed. "Blondie, I am not a Slytherin," Ginny said while putting her hands on her hips. She resembled Mrs. Weasley instantly. Harry shuddered a little at the thought. 

Blaise threw an arm around Ginny. "Weasley, you hang too much around with us. You practically are a Slytherin. Don't deny it, but embrace it. We are cunning and devious. You like both those things." Blaise said while wiggling his eyebrows at Ginny. Ginny elbowed him in the ribs and walked to the couch. 

"Why do you need Slytherins, Draco?" Theo asked, plopping next to Ginny. "We need to let the school know that we are a triad, but we haven't yet decided how we should do that," Draco told them. Pansy snorted. "Well, this is going to be fun." She said with a smirk.

The next day at school went by smoothly. Before dinner, Hermione was walking alone from the library to the Great Hall. In one of the corridors, she was cornered by Daphne and Millicent. "Hello Granger, just heard about your boyfriend," Daphne said with a smirk. The hallway was full of students, and a lot stopped walking. Slytherin against Gryffindor was a long time ago, but people still liked the drama. 

"Where is he now?" Millicent sneered a little. Hermione looked at them and scanned the corridor. She saw what she was looking for and smirked. "Well, Millicent, he is over there with Harry." They turned around and let out a fake gasp. 

Draco and Harry were kissing and holding hands. Everybody turned to look and gasped. Daphne turned around again with mirth in her eyes. "Well, that was over soon, wasn't it Granger?" She asked sweetly. 

"Why do you think it's over?" Draco said while he strolled towards the witches with Harry behind him. Draco kissed Hermione when he reached her and tucked a stray curl behind her ear, smiling the whole time. "Hello love, missed us?" He winked and stepped aside. Hermione's inside flipped when he said that. 

Harry pulled Hermione against him and felt his heart hammering. _God, it was hot to see them kiss._ Harry put his hands on her cheeks, smiled at her, and kissed her. The familiar burning sensation was there, and he didn't want to pull away. 

When they came up for air Hermione's cheeks were flushed, and she bit her lower lip. _Damn, she really needs to stop to that in public._ Harry thought. He looked back at Draco and kissed him again on the lips. He sighed and pulled back to look at their audience. "Enjoyed the show?" Harry asked while raising his eyebrow. He heard Hermione giggle and took her hand and pulled her with him. Draco put an arm loosely around Hermione's shoulder, and they walked into the Great Hall. 

When they were seated, they looked around. Almost everybody who was in the corridor was now in the Great Hall, and they could hear whispers. Paying them no attention, they started to eat. Until a furious looking redhead sat down opposite of them. His face was almost as red as his hair.

"Seriously? You three? Harry, I already thought you were mental when I just thought it was Malf-Black, now you also stolen Hermione?" He sneered at them. "And you-"turning to Hermione. "-two boys? At the same fucking time? You slut!" Hermione didn't react because of the shock at her old friend's words, but Harry and Draco jumped up so fast that it was like they had not been seated at all. Wands were drawn at Ron. They were already preparing to hex him. 

At that moment, Sirius and Remus walked in the Great Hall and saw the drawn wands. They started towards their kind of adopted pups. "Prongslet, Drakey, put down the wands." Draco and Harry huffed at the names but put them down anyway. "He called Hermione a slut because we are a Triad. If he wishes to live without warts in all places, we kindly advise him to shut his mouth." Harry said with all the calm he could muster but with a sneer on his face that could make Lucius Malfoy envious. 

Around them, the whole Great Hall had gone silent, to curious as what was going to happen next. Sirius drew his wand and pointed at the redhead. "Never heard of a Triad Red? Please enlighten me why do you think you can call our Kitten any names?" Ron recoiled from the wand, afraid to be hexed. 

"Mister Sirius Orion Black!" McGonagall screeched. Sirius blinked and put away his wand and turned around to look at the incoming Headmistress. "Minnie! Long time no see! You, Remmy, and I should get some tea sometime, but we should go now to train our pupils! Have a lovely evening!" He tapped the Triad on their shoulders, and they got up without having diner. Harry pouted. He really was hungry. 

"Wait just one second!" McGonagall huffed. "You cannot and will not point a wand again at a student! What were you thinking?" McGonagall said. "Well, Minnie you see-"Remus stopped Sirius with a clap on his shoulder. "Minerva, we are very sorry to intrude. It seemed that Ronald here insulted our niece. You know how Sirius can be when someone insults his loved ones." He said smoothly. 

McGonagall did not look convinced but turned to the students. "Care to explain?" Hermione had finally recovered from the first shock of being called a slut. "Madam, we just let everybody know that Draco, Harry, and I are a triad. Ronald did not take it well." She said with a disdainful look at Ron. He had the decency to look a little guilty. 

"30 points from Gryffindor Mister Weasley, a triad is normal in the magical world. Please have an open mind and do not call another student any names. And Sirius, please behave if you are within the walls. I do not care for any more incidents." With that said, she turned around to finish her diner. The Great Hall also resumed in conversation. The Triad followed Sirius and Remus without looking back at Ron and were led to an empty classroom.

When the door closed, Hermione threw herself first at Sirius than at Remus and kissed Harry and Draco on the cheeks. "Thank you, it means a lot that you think of me as your niece!" She exclaimed happily. "Of course, Kitten! You are with my godson and kind of adopted son. We are going to see a lot of you for a long time." Sirius claimed.

Draco pulled her into a hug. "We would have hexed him if we weren't interrupted." He said in her ear. "I know." She whispered back and pulled away. "But still, I can take care of myself!" She said, and she slapped him playfully on the arm. 

"Okay! Did anyone else think he sounded freaking jealous because we are dating? What the fuck did he mean by stolen you, Hermione?" Harry said now he thought back at the confrontation. "I really have no idea." She shuddered a little bit. "Can you imagine? Him and me with his eating habit?" This pulled a shudder out of everyone.


	15. Chapter 15

Harry looked at his opponent, quickly addressed the problem, and disarmed the culprit. ''Great work pup, but you need to work on your stance. If I poke you right here-'' Remus said while touching Harry's elbow, which caused Harry to fall. ''-you don't have any balance left. See?'' 

Harry growled. This was the sixth time this happened. Hermione sighed, ''Harry, you are frustrated, I can feel it. What can we do to help you?'' She walked to him and pulled him to his feet. ''I don't know, Mione. I just feel off. Last week went a lot better, but it's like something is going to happen, and I don't like it.'' He said while pulling Hermione in a hug to comfort himself. 

Draco was practicing with Theo and Blaise a couple of meters away but also felt off. ''Why can't I do this spell? Last Saturday, I could blow the target away with ease. Has something changed?'' He asks Sirius who was helping them. Sirius shrugged. ''I don't know Drakey, did you all do something different? Only Harry, Hermione, and you are having difficulties.'' 

Hermione, Harry, and Draco glanced at each other but couldn't think of anything. ''Could it have to do something with the bond?'' Sirius looked pensive, ''It is possible, but why would it happen just now?'' He said to the group at large.

''Has something happened that could have upset one of you?'' Remus chimed in. ''No, only that confrontation with Ron last week, but it didn't bother me as much because you all stood up to me, and Fred and George pranked him because of that,'' Hermione said with a fond smile on her face at the memory. 

She was very responsible, of course, and would never encourage bullying. But the pranking Fred and George did to 'salvage' her honor as they called it, was endearing. Ron was stunned when he was locked out of his room, trunk, and that his hair had turned green every time he took a sweet. His mother had to owl him new clothes, and he had to sleep on the common room couch for four days. 

''Mmh, and did you share any more memories or something like that? And you are sleeping in close proximities, right?'' Sirius asked, he even looked very serious instead of fooling around. The silver trio still blushed at the wording of their uncle. ''Yes, we have shared memories, and Hermione has a separate room, but she is close by, and Draco and I have different beds,'' Harry told them with a shrug. 

Remus and Sirius looked at each other. It looked like they had a silent conversation before looking back at the teens. ''Can I cast a charm to check if everything is alright? And to check if nobody was poisoned?'' Remus asked carefully. The shocked looks he got and quick nods were enough. 

Remus cast the spell and gasped. ''We need to get you three to the Hospital wing, right now.'' He showed the results to Sirius, who growled and took Hermione's hand. ''Somebody has dosed you three with repulsion potion. There is even a hint of a love potion, Madam Pomfrey can see to whom it is set. It seems that someone is trying to split you up.'' Sirius growled, and he pulled Hermione with him protectively. 

Draco and Harry were livid. How dare someone try to tear them apart. Within minutes they were at the Hospital wing, Remus explained to Madam Pomfrey what happened, and she quickly got to work. Hermione was first to be relieved of the potion and felt herself better within a few minutes. ''You have been dosed with repulsion potion, you apparently needed to be repulsed by Mister Black and Potter. You did not have a love potion in your system. How you didn't notice this sooner as both Mister Black or Potter did not repulse you is a mystery.'' The nurse told her. 

Hermione turned to look at Sirius, ''Is it possible that we cannot be repulsed by each other because of the bonding? That this is the reason, we were feeling off?'' She asked. Sirius nodded, ''Yes, that would be the reason. You three need to be careful about what you are going to eat and drink. We don't want any of you to be sick or worse.'' He said. 

Harry was next in line to be cleaned of the potions. ''You also have repulsion potion in your system, together with a love potion, set to Ginerva Weasley.'' Madam Pomfrey told the green-eyed boy. Harry jumped from the bed and started pacing. ''Why would anyone want me to be with Ginny so badly? Only because so I wouldn't be with Hermione and Draco?'' He asked aloud. 

''We need to inform Headmistress McGonagall. This cannot happen again.'' Remus told the teens with a growl. Sirius stood and conjured a werewolf Patronus, whispered a message, and sent it off. 

Draco was now ready to face the nurse. ''Also repulsion potion, to repulse Mister Potter and Miss Granger. And a love potion set to Miss Parkinson. You were speaking about a bonding. Care to explain what kind of bonding this is?'' She asked the group with raised eyebrows. Sirius sighed and explained the bonding that because Draco was a Black and bonded with Harry and Hermione. The nurse nodded along with the story and asked the three students to stand in front of her before performing another spell. 

The light in the room dimmed, Harry, Hermione, and Draco took hold of each other hands with their eyes closed. There was a bright light, and Madam Pomfrey told them to open their eyes. They had moved closer to each other and were panting a little. ''What was that?" Hermione asked the nurse. At that moment, the doors of the hospital wing burst open, and Headmistress McGonagall strode in. 

''That Miss Granger was to check what kind of bonding you three have, and as I suspect, your bonding is a lot stronger then everyone would have thought.'' She told when she reached the group. Sirius and Remus's eyes were wide, Madam Pomfrey just sighed and looked like she had seen to much shit to care. 

''We already knew that the bond was unbreakable. You told us ourselves, Sirius-'' Harry started before interrupted by Sirius. ''Yes, I told you that the bonding is unbreakable, but I only thought you three bonded like a loving couple or trio, but apparently, you also bonded your magic together. This means that if something happens to one of you, the other two will feel it. It will also strengthen you and your magic. You will be able to do a lot more than your peers.'' He told them in awe. 

''Just like you were able to stop the workings of a couple of strong potions,'' Remus added. McGonagall scraped her throat. ''It also means that if or rather when-'' She stopped and looked a little uncomfortable. ''-you consummate. You are officially married. Not even a marriage contract can change this.'' She told the three teens who were shocked at this revelation and mortified to hear their headmistress say this. 

Harry was the first to recover. ''So, when we have had- sex-'' He paused to swallow. ''-we will be married?'' Hermione was looking a little green, and Draco went to sit down and put his head in his hands. ''I'm so sorry. I did not know all of this, how can-.'' Someone took his hands away from his face. He looked in a beautiful face with little freckles covering her nose and chocolate brown eyes with golden flecks. ''Don't you dare blame this on yourself. I admit we are very young to even think about this stuff, but I am not going anywhere. If I could do it all over again, I would have done the same things. And we are not going to have sex just yet. So get your mind out of the gutter, the both of you, and let's get back to our dorm. I'm knackered.''

Harry walked over to Draco and Hermione and took both their hands before placing kisses on them. Looking Draco straight in his grey eyes, he started to speak. ''I agree with Hermione, I would have done the same things when given a choice. I don't mind being stuck to you forever. Even if you are a git most of the time-'' He smirked a little, and Draco rolled his eyes. ''-we can wait as long as we want before going to the next step. I am perfectly fine with just being with the two of you.'' He then placed a soft kiss on Draco's lips before turning to Hermione. 

''You already were my best friend, and without you, I probably would have died in the first year and last summer-'' Hermione smiled at him. ''-I won't pressure you to anything you don't want. We will come with you to your parent's house to explain everything because they probably should know that we aren't going anywhere without you and that you are our present and future.'' Harry then kissed her lips, and after a moment, he pulled away and placed a kiss on her forehead. 

Hermione blinked a few times because she felt tears building up and didn't want to cry right now. Draco tugged on her hand, and they walked out of the hospital wing after a quick goodbye to Sirius and Remus. As soon as they were in their dorm, Draco took Hermione and Harry's hand in his. ''You two are the best things that could have happened to me, and I am glad that you are not mad at me because it is my fault you two don't have any options besides me-'' He tugged a little at their hands when they started to protest that they didn't need anyone else. Draco smirked before continuing. ''-let me finish, please, I just wanted to say that I am fine with waiting until we are all ready to do - you know - that.'' He said. 

''And I wanted to tell you this for the first time in private-'' He took a deep breath and looked in Hermione's eyes before cupping her cheek with his hand. ''I love you.'' Hermione beamed at him at pecked him on his lips. He then turned to Harry, took the green-eyed boy's hand, and put his other hand under Harry's chin. ''I love you.'' He said to Harry, who grinned at the blonde wizard before kissing him soundly on the lips. 

''I love both of you,'' Hermione told them, smiling fondly at her two wizards. ''Me too,'' Harry added when he parted from Draco before resting his forehead against Draco's. Harry then turned towards Hermione to kiss her and hug her. After a moment, there was a knock on the door, and Draco went to open it. 

Theo, Blaise, Ginny, Pansy, and the twins walked in. ''Okay, can somebody please explain what has happened? Because we are all going barmy to wait any longer.'' Pansy stated before sitting cross-legged in front of the coffee table. The rest of the group piled on the empty chairs and couch before looking at the trio expectantly. 

Harry sighed and told them what had happened. Ginny and Pansy were shocked that Draco and Harry were dosed with a love potion keyed to them. ''Could it have been the same person who wrote me to step in after your assault, Granger?'' Pansy asked. The trio looked at each other. ''It is possible. We really need to find out who that was before anything else is going to happen.'' Hermione said while biting her lower lip. Harry took her hand, and with his thumb, he released her lower lip from her teeth. 

''We will find out who did this to us. First, we need to think of a way to stop the intake of potions. We are immune, thank Godric for that, but we still felt off because of it.'' Harry said, thinking of a way to stop consuming the potions. ''That's rather simple, you have an army of house-elves. Just station a couple of them here at Hogwarts with orders that only they can make the three of you breakfast, lunch, and dinner. McGonagall will approve because of the poisonings.'' Blaise told them from his place on the couch while stroking Ginny's hair absently, who didn't mind at all because she was almost purring from the attention. 

Harry immediately called two house-elves and Dobby. ''Dobby, Winston, Pinky, you are hereby transferred to Hogwarts. With the main task of preparing our food-'' Harry said while indicating to himself, Hermione and Draco. ''-you don't have to do anything special, just make sure nobody is tampering with our food.'' He finished. Dobby's eyes widened. ''Master Harry sir, has been eating tampered foods?'' He squeaked. Winston and Pinky now to had eyes wide as saucers. 

''Yes, someone has tried to give Draco, Hermione and me repulsion potions and love potions. We didn't have any problems because of it, but we want to make sure it doesn't happen again.'' Harry said. The three elves nodded hastily. Hermione looked thoughtful before speaking to the house-elves. ''Dobby, Pinky, Winston, if you are in the kitchens and preparing our food, can you also keep your eyes open if somebody tries to poison us again? And could you question the elves who did this to us?'' She asked them. ''Of course, miss Herminny, we will not let anything happen to your foodsies,'' Pinky told her. Hermione smiled and thanked the elves before they popped away. 

''Well, hopefully some of them will know something about the potions.'' She said to the group at large, they all nodded in assent. ''We will have - Fred or George started while the other finished. ''-your backs! Don't we brother of mine?'' ''We sure do, brother! We need to look after our adoptive brothers and sister.'' One of the twins said while winking at the three. While the three of them smiled at their antics. Draco was touched that the twins saw him too as part of the family even if their youngest brother was a pain in the ass. 

* * *

The following Saturday, the Slytherin - Gryffindor match was happening, every house was excited, and Harry and Draco were continuously bickering about it, driving Hermione mad. ''If I hear one more time about the both of you falling off your brooms at the last game you played against each other, I'm never getting on a broom with either of you again!'' She bristled during lunch. That shut them up for at least two whole minutes. They again started to tear at each other because of the tension they both felt. 

Hermione growled a little until she felt a hand on her shoulder. When she looked up, she saw Remus and Sirius standing there, smirking at the three of them. Hermione jumped up and pulled them both in a hug. ''Thank Godric, you two are here. They are driving me mad. Please get met away from them!'' She said while putting a hand against her forehead, before resolving into giggles at the aimed mock glares from her boys. 

Harry and Draco both got up with them to go to the Quidditch pitch to get ready for the match. Hermione both gave them a good luck kiss on the cheek, and the boys walked to the dressing rooms together. Hermione got to the stands with Remus and Sirius, talking to them before the stands started to fill out, and the noise was too much to just talk without raising your voice. 

Before the match started, she saw a wizard in the stands of Slytherin with long white-blonde hair. She gasped and gained Sirius and Remus's attention and pointed at Lucius Malfoy. They both growled but kept seated. They did not know what he was doing here, but they could not start a brawl out of nowhere. She wished that she could inform Harry and Draco, but the teams were already out of the dressing rooms and walking to the middle of the pitch were the teams mounted their brooms. 

Draco and Harry both were easily recognized, but still, she couldn't get a message to them. She was fidgeting in her seat, waiting for the game to begin. And she was hoping that nothing terrible would happen. Madam Hooch released the balls into the air and the snitch. All the players were up in the air. 

''Johnsen had the quaffle, throws it at Bell who just barely escapes a pretty good aimed bludger from Bole-'' Hermione tuned the rest of the words out—only looking at Harry and Draco, who both were circling the pitch looking for the snitch. She saw Draco looking over the stands and freeze. She knew he had seen his father, and he flew to Harry. 

''Harry, Lucius is here,'' Draco told the other seeker. He didn't want to refer to Lucius as his father anymore; he didn't deserve it. Harry looked down and saw the blond wizard in the stands. ''Be careful. We don't know what will happen.'' Harry told Draco with concern in his voice. ''You too Potter. I don't want anything to happen to you or Granger.'' He said and then turned around to fly back to circle the pitch. 

Harry felt dread building in his stomach and knew it was because of Draco. He was feeling a lot more nervous now than before the match. After twenty minutes and nine goals, six for Gryffindor and three for Slytherin, the snitch was spotted by Harry. He dove towards the goalpost where he saw the golden ball. Draco also saw it and flew a little behind him. Still twenty meters in the air, they zoomed towards the ball. The ball flew fast to the right, and they followed, neck to neck. They were almost touching in the flight to the snitch. When the snitch again turned and flew sharp to the right, they followed, before being blasted away by the wind. 

Harry was barely holding on to his broom at the strange hard wind. He looked next to him, and his stomach dropped. He saw Draco falling. It seemed like he was knocked out. He immediately turned his broom and dived, urging the broom to go faster and faster. They were almost at the ground before Harry finally could put his arms around Draco. He did brake as much as he could on his broom but still had too much momentum. He held on to Draco and spun himself so that Draco would land on him instead of the ground. He felt a sharp pain in his shoulder when they landed, and all the air left his lungs. After a couple of moments struggling for breath, he started to sit to check on Draco. 

Draco was still knocked out but didn't seem to have any injuries. Harry felt that his shoulder was broken, but couldn't care less. Harry fretted over Draco, pulling Draco's head in his lap and tried to cast a diagnosis charm, which failed because he was still panicking. He looked up when somebody crashed on her knees next to him. Hermione was there with tears in her eyes. ''Harry, are you okay? What happened? I saw Draco fall and you diving after him, but we didn't see what caused it.'' She told him, the tears now streamed freely down her face. 

''I don't know what happened, I felt a strong wind, and when I looked behind me, Draco was already falling. I just reached him on time before he coul-'' He swallowed the lump in his throat. He didn't want to think about what could have happened if he wasn't there on time. Hermione put her arm around him and touched Draco's face, while Harry's hands were still in Draco's hair. As soon as she touched him, she could feel a warm feeling. It seemed to pull at her. 

She glanced at Harry and saw he had a thoughtful look on his face. ''It feels like we need to give in or something like that-'' He said. Hermione nodded. She saw that Sirius and Remus were running to them with McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey behind them. ''Let's do this now before it's too late.'' She whispered to Harry. She closed her eyes and pushed. She didn't know what she was pushing out until she felt a twinge in her stomach, the same twinge you always felt a little when casting charms. She pushed her magic into Draco, and she felt it twirling through her fingers. She also felt another push. She knew it was from Harry's magic. 

Harry pushed his magic out and could feel Draco's and Hermione's magic together, tingling in his hands. He felt that it was draining to do this, but Draco's magic started to feel stronger under his fingertips. Harry heard a gasp and opened his eyes to see Draco's grey eyes looking up at him. Draco was panting and tried to sit. Harry pushed him gently down again with one arm. ''Easy love, you just made a terrible fall. We couldn't-'' Harry started to yawn, and his eyes began to droop. ''-we couldn't get you awake. We don't know what we did, but-'' Harry saw in the corner of his eye that Hermione slumped over, passing out on top of Draco's torso. 

Draco put his arms around her protectively and looked around. Sirius, Remus, Madam Pomfrey, McGonagall, and even Snape had reached them now. Harry shifted a little and started to lay down, clearly exhausted. Draco also felt the pull of sleep and put his head down again on Harry's legs before everything went dark. 

* * *

When Harry woke up, it was nearly midnight. He looked around him and saw that he was in the hospital wing again. He sighed dramatically. Sirius and Remus were dozing in two chairs opposite his bed. He saw that Draco was lying in bed next to him, and Hermione on the other side. The beds were just inches apart. It seemed that they didn't want to separate the three of them, and he was grateful. 

He felt that his shoulder was a lot better. _Probably skele grow._ He thought while shuddering when he remembered how that potion tasted last year. ''Hey pup, glad you're awake.'' He heard Sirius whisper. Harry scooted out of bed and walked to Sirius to hug him. ''What happened?'' Harry asked softly so that he wouldn't wake anyone else. 

''Lucius tried to curse you, but Draco got in the way. He took the full blow of the curse and got knocked out. Thank Godric that it was only a curse to knock you out, it was with the intention that you would fall to your death, but that luckily didn't happen.'' Sirius growled, clearly still enraged by what had happened. Draco and Hermione started to stir, and Remus was awake now. 

Draco and Hermione started to sit and leaned against the headboard. Harry got back into bed and put his arms out so that they could snuggle against him. Both did this as soon as possible. Hermione let out a sigh of relief. ''I can't believe your father tried to curse me. Wait, scratch that, I totally can believe that shit.'' Harry grumbled. Draco poked him in his side. ''He isn't my father anymore in my book. And I will not refer to him as such.'' Draco told them. 

Hermione put her hand out to take Draco's and squeezed for reassurance. ''What happened after you two crashed? I felt like I needed to push my magic into you.'' Hermione said, and Harry nodded in assent. ''It felt the same to me. I even could feel when you were starting to feel better. It only drained me completely.'' Harry responded and chuckled a little. 

''I was in the dark, but before I could get lost, I saw two hands reaching out to me, and took them. Then I woke up.'' Draco admitted. Sirius cleared his throat, earning the attention again from the teens. ''It seems that you two healed Draco, this was through your bonding and with your magic. You drained yourself to heal him—a completely selfless act, but very dangerous.'' He said stern. ''Please do not repeat that. We were scared shitless when all three of you passed out.'' Sirius added with a little smile. 

Hermione looked at Sirius and Remus. ''If something like this happens again, nobody will stop me from helping either of them. Even if it drains my magic, I don't care. I rather pass out and not have any magic before I lose Harry or Draco.'' She told them with determination. ''Kitten,-'' Sirius started to plead, ''No Sirius, I will not lose them.'' She said while spitting fire with her eyes. Sirius gulped a little and sat back. Hermione felt two sets of hands on her arm and looked at Harry and Draco. ''We don't want to lose you Hermione, but you need to calm down. Your hair is sparking.'' Harry said, while smiling a little. 

Hermione took a deep breath and calmed down. Draco snuggled back at Harry's side, and Hermione also laid back down. ''Get some more sleep. Tomorrow is Sunday, and you can rest the whole day. We will take up Occlumency lessons the next time.'' Remus said with a fond smile. ''We still need to deal with Lucius though, and find out if he also is the culprit who poisoned us and cast the imperius curse on Crabbe and Goyle,'' Harry told them before easing down a little to be comfortable between his witch and wizard. 

''We will find out, and we will deal with that, but right now, you need to sleep before I call Madam Pomfrey in here so you can take another dose of Skele grow,'' Remus said while smirking. Harry gulped and closed his eyes.


	16. Chapter 16

**Hello lovelies! There will be a little time jump in this chapter. It's just a couple of months!**

**Warning! I own nothing of the Harry Potter world. I just love to write!**

**A little warning for a little smut ;)**

* * *

''So, what happened to Lucius?'' Draco asked while they ate breakfast in their common room. Remus and Sirius stiffened a little. ''Nothing, Lucius still has to much influence. We can't get him just yet.'' Sirius growled. Draco sighed. He knew Lucius was smart and played his part as a loyal follower to the minister and high ranking officers well.

''How can we get to him? He did so many foul things; he's a Death Eather, abused his own son, he was the reason Ginny was possessed last year-'' Hermione summed while counting on her fingers before interrupted. ''Possessed? How was she possessed?'' Remus asked curiously.

''Tom Riddle's diary, you may know him as Lord Voldemort. He somehow put a piece of him in his old diary, when Ginny got it, she was possessed by him. Because of that, she opened the Chamber of Secrets and sent the Basilisk to attack muggle-born children.'' Harry explained while sipping his pumping juice.

Remus and Sirius glanced at each other. ''What's wrong?'' Hermione asked after seeing their worried glance. ''We are concerned, you talked about a piece of him in his old diary. That sounds like some dark magic. We need to find out what kind of dark magic it is.'' Remus explained after a long silence.

Harry hissed and looked green. Draco put a hand on Harry's shoulder. ''What are you thinking of, Harry?'' Harry looked at Draco and Hermione and sighed. ''I think Dumbledore knew about this magic. He examined the diary. He must have detected something, but he wasn't willing to share.'' Harry grumbled.

Sirius, Remus, Hermione, and Draco paled at that. Dumbledore was on the run because of the three teens and the accusations they had brought to light. Hermione worried her lip. ''We could try to find him? We know he probably will try to find us in the summer when we are on holiday. If we are going on the offensive and find him, maybe he will help us with Voldemort. He was clear that without his help, we couldn't achieve it. I really don't want to agree with the old goat, but he probably has this information we need.'' She quickly said to the men.

Sirius growled, ''NO! I don't want any of you within 50 kilometers of him. Remus and I will try to find him.'' Harry scoffed. ''How are you going to achieve this Padfoot? A whole team of Aurors is trying to find him. How are you two going to do this when they couldn't?'' He glared towards his godfather.

''You three are not going to contribute in search of him! You are just thirteen-'' Hermione interrupted him. ''I'm fourteen! And we do understand that you're worried, Sirius.'' She finished a lot calmer. Sirius was livid. His pups were not going to get in trouble. They are not going on a wild goose chase to find one of the most powerful wizards ever known who has had a grudge for them.

Remus put his hand on Sirius's shoulder. ''Love, please, you know they are too stubborn to sit this out. If we aren't going to help them, they are going to do it themselves. Hermione is the brightest witch of her age, Harry is just like James, and Draco is too headstrong not to get involved.'' He said with a small smile playing on his lips.

Sirius actually sagged a little at his lover's words. He knew Remus was right. ''I am not going to like it, but you're probably right. They are too stubborn-'' Sirius said with a glare pointed at the teens. Who were beaming at him. ''-for their own good, but we are better doing this as a team.'' Sirius sighed, Harry immediately tackled him.

''We know you are worried, but we will find him, and then we can find out what that magic was. We need to know. What if there are more of those diaries?'' Harry said while hugging Sirius close. He shivered when he thought back at the confrontation in the Chamber of Secrets.

They started planning for the search in the summer. Lucius was temporarily forgotten. They would get their revenge, but Voldemort would get their attention right now.

* * *

''Pans, you have a choice. Or you're going with me for the first two weeks of holiday with my family. Or you're going with Harry and Draco to Potter Mansion.'' Hermione asked Pansy, who was lying on Hermione's bed, reading a muggle magazine.

Pansy scoffed, ''Granger, you understand that I am not willingly going to spend two whole weeks alone with your boyfriends, right? But are your parents sure they want to bring me to Greece?'' She asked the last question with a little tremble in her voice.

Hermione sighed and looked at her new best friend. A lot had changed the last couple of months. After the attack on the Quidditch pitch, the trio was sure never to be alone again. Pansy was almost constantly with Hermione and Ginny. Theo and Blaise were always with Draco and Harry.

Her parents had disowned Pansy, and she was nameless at this moment. But she didn't mind. Hermione's parents had met Pansy with Easter and liked her a lot, even if she was a little loud. So they already had invited her to join them on holiday back then, but Pansy was still insecure that they actually wanted her to join them.

''Pans, you know they want you to go with us. They loved you; you have nothing to worry about.'' She again said to the black-haired witch. ''Is it even okay for you to be that far away from the boys?'' Pansy countered. Hermione knew she was changing the subject because it still was a little hurtful to talk about her family or joining a new family at that. But she had a point. They didn't know how the bond was going to react to being apart for so long and so far...

''I don't know. But my parents are looking forward to this trip. I can't tell them to shove it and not join them.'' Hermione said, shrugging a little. Pansy nodded, ''I just hope it isn't going to be nasty. I don't want to see you get hurt, Mione.'' Pansy said while standing up from the bed to hug Hermione. ''It will be okay, it will only be two weeks. What can go wrong?'' Hermione said with a lot of concern.

Hermione and Pansy said their goodbyes to the boys and Sirius and Remus. Hermione felt a little pull inside of her but paid it no mind. _Just nerves, I am just excited to see my parents again and to go on holiday._

She was pulled away to an empty spot on the platform by Draco and Harry. ''We are going to miss you, Mione,'' Harry said while hugging her tight. Draco joined them in a group hug. ''I'm going to miss you too. I love you both so much.'' She said while tearing up a little.

Draco pulled back and brushed the tears off her cheeks. ''We love you too, it's only two weeks, after that we will see each other each day, and we will start our hunt, and we are going to the Quidditch finals!'' He said with a lot of enthusiasm. Hermione groaned. The hunt was okay. She was going to feel useful and all that. But the Quidditch finals was not something to look forward to if you don't like Quidditch that much.

Harry chuckled and looked in her eyes before kissing her softly on the lips. ''It's going to be okay Mione, we will see you in two weeks, and you have Pansy with you.'' He said while putting a lock of her hair behind her ear. She nodded at them. ''I know, we just don't know yet how the bond is going to react, and I'm a little nervous because of that.'' She said while looking at her shoes.

Draco put his hand under her chin to look her in the eyes. ''If something is going to happen or if some of us are not feeling well because of the bond, we will do anything to change that. Even if that means going to Greece and kidnap you.'' Draco said with a smirk; Hermione laughed and hit him soft on his arm. ''You are the worst.''

''But you still love me,'' Draco said before kissing her and pulling her in a hug. She went back to Pansy and through the gate before being tackled in a group hug by her parents, who had been waiting on the muggle side of the platform. Her mother pulled Pansy also in a hug, and her father even kissed Pansy on her forehead, making Pansy blush, and she gave a watery smile.

* * *

The next morning they went to the airport, Hermione felt the pull again in her chest, but it was just annoying. In the airplane however, it got worse and worse. The pull inside her chest was getting painful. She took a few pills for the pain, and it eased a little.

Greece was amazing, and it was so beautiful. Pansy and Hermione were almost always laying at the pool in their bikinis. Pansy openly flirted with the waitress at the hotel to make Hermione laugh. She was taking a lot of pain medication, her mother even wanted to take her to a muggle doctor in Greece, but Hermione said that it wasn't necessary. After two days, she woke up in the middle of the night, screaming because of her chest pain.

She was gasping, and Pansy was trying to comfort her before she felt the pull lessen, and the pain ebbed away. ''What's wrong? I can't feel the pull anymore, Pansy! What if something has happened to them?'' Hermione started to panic. Her boys needed to be okay. There was no other option. They needed to be safe. She began to cry, and Pansy tried to console her.

After a few moments, there was a knock on the door. Pansy thought it would be Helen or Dan and went to open the door. She started to laugh when she opened the door and saw two disheveled boys. ''Pans?'' Hermione asked when she heard the laugh coming from the door. Before she could completely register it, her boys stood in front of her.

She flew out of bed to tackle them both in a bone-crushing hug. ''HOW?! DID YOU ALSO FEEL- I MISSED YOU SO SO SO MUCH!'' She sobbed and screamed the words. She pulled back a little and saw that their faces also had tear stains. ''We did feel it. It was unbearable. We knew we needed to see you, so Sirius booked a hotel room for the next couple of weeks for the four of us, and Remus had made a Portkey to transport us. We wanted to come sooner, but I think they didn't know it would become so painful, and we missed you too, Mione! Pansy, you too, of course.'' Harry said while still holding on to Hermione. Pansy scoffed but smiled nonetheless.

''How did you bear with it, Mione? We needed to stay touching each other. Otherwise, it was too painful; I can't imagine how it would have felt for you.'' Draco said while brushing the hairs out of Hermione's face. She told them about the pain medication. It was muggle, so Draco didn't understand the concept, but nodded with her. Harry and Draco still had a hold on her and weren't going to let go.

''Okay boys, where is your room? I will sleep there tonight because I really don't need to see any funny business.'' Pansy said while walking towards the door. Harry and Draco began to protest, but Pansy waved them away. They told her the room number, and she closed the door behind her.

Hermione wasted no time to pull Harry close and kiss him full on the mouth. When she let him go, he had a glazed expression. She turned to Draco and kissed him with everything she had. She felt his hand on her hip, tightening the hold. When Hermione pulled back from Draco, Harry pulled Draco in for a kiss.

Hermione felt a hot feeling down in her stomach when she watched and took both their hands to lead them back to the bed. She went to lie down and started to touch Harry and Draco's chest when they lay next to her. ''Maybe you should take those off,'' She said, a little nervous while plucking at their shirts.

Harry and Draco looked at each other and didn't know how fast they could take off their shirts. Hermione was still in her top and short, but they didn't mind. She sat up and looked down at her boys. Both without their shirts, and it looked amazing. They both were fit; Harry had more broad shoulders and started to get abs, not just from being skinny, but actual abs because of Quidditch. Draco was leaner and also had begun to get abs. They both looked at her with darkening eyes.

She trailed her hands from their cheeks down to their pants. When she had her hands at their belly buttons, they both inhaled sharply. Now understanding what she was trying to do. ''Do you want me to stop?'' Hermione whispered before stilling her hands. Harry started to sit up to protest, but Hermione pushed him down again. ''No, I don't want you to stop,'' Draco said huskily. Harry just nodded with Draco.

She first started to kiss Harry and unbuttoned his pants before turning to Draco to do the same thing while Harry shimmied out of his pants. They both lay only in their boxers now. They both had a hard-on that was clear with just looking at their boxers. She had her hands again at their belly buttons, and she channeled all her Gryffindor courage before slowly making her way down. When she palmed both their hard-ons, the boys groaned almost simultaneously.

''Do you want me to stop?'' Hermione asked again. They shook their heads, not able to form words at this moment. She started to massage both of them. She could feel their excitement and could feel how wet she was getting with just performing this. ''Oh, fuck.'' Harry groaned. Draco had his eyes shut but was also groaning. Hermione loved the sound of her boys.

She put her hands on the brim of their boxers. ''Is this still okay?'' She whispered. Draco opened his eyes, and his normal silver eyes were a lot darker. He nodded, and sat up to kiss her before lying down again. Harry nodded and watched eagerly when they kissed. She pushed the boxers down and took in a sharp breath at the look of both members. Her core felt hot and she nibbled on her lip. Harry groaned but kept looking at their witch.

She started stroking them both at the same pace. Harry looked at Draco; he had again closed his eyes. Harry stroked with his hand over Draco's cheek, and Draco turned his head to look at Harry. Harry bend over to kiss him, and Draco moaned in his mouth. Hermione started pumping faster. Harry groaned and bucked his hips to get more friction.

''Mione - fuck, don't stop.'' Draco moaned against Harry's lips. This was too much for Harry, and he came undone with two more trusts with his hips in Hermione's hand. Draco followed right after him. Hermione could feel the passion and intensity through the bond they shared and moaned because of it.

Harry charmed the cum away and pulled Hermione in a searing kiss. Draco pushed her top above her bra and started to massage her breast through the fabric. She moaned against Harry's mouth. Harry let her go to get rid of her top. ''Can I remove this?'' Harry asked with a husky voice, while pulling at the strap of her bra. Hermione nodded, Harry unfastened the bra, and Draco pulled the straps off her arms.

They flipped her around, and Hermione let out a surprised gasp. She was lying on the bed in only her shorts. Harry started kissing Hermione's neck, and Draco kissed her with fiery passion on her lips while still caressing one of her breasts. Hermione's senses went into overload. Her brain was drawing a blank for the first time she could remember.

She moaned against Draco's lips and felt Harry placing open mouth kisses on her other breast. Draco traced his fingers down, not breaking contact with her mouth until his hand cupped her core through her short. "Do you want me to stop?" He said while trying and failing to hide a smirk.

"Don't you dare Draco," Hermione breathlessly said. It was all he needed to hear. He tore himself away from her mouth and removed her short. Harry claimed her mouth with his own and put one hand in the nape of her neck, and the other was playing with one of her breasts.

Draco put his hand over her core, and Hermione bucked her hips at the contact. His dumb was tracing circles over her clit, Hermione mewled at the motion. The tension was building in her core, and the boys could feel it through the bond. Harry stopped kissing her and put his hand over Draco's at Hermione's center. He gave Draco a searing kiss and put one finger in between her folds.

''Oh-Godric-Merlin-Oh!'' Hermione moaned, Harry and Draco felt that she was close, ''Let go, Mione,'' Draco told her, putting a little more pressure on her clit. With a heated moan, she came undone at the hands of her boys. Harry kissed her softly before he did the same with Draco.

Within minutes they were asleep next to each other. Feeling better than they ever had.

* * *

The next morning they had a rude awakening because of the scream they heard in the hallway. ''What are you doing here? Hermione is still sleeping, wait... WHERE ARE YOUR BOYS?'' Draco and Harry bolted upright and started dressing as soon as they could. Hermione just put on her top and shorts and giggled a little. They could hear Sirius try to calm down Helen, and it was funny to overhear.

''Helen! Relax, they should be here somewhere, and we will explain why we are here as soon as possible. But right now we are just on holiday at a lovely hotel!'' Sirius exclaimed. ''I'm going to check on Hermione,'' Helen told the animagus and knocked on Hermione's and Pansy's bedroom door.

Hermione went to open the door, ''Hello mum! Look who's here! They just saw Pansy downstairs, and she sent them to my room.'' She mentioned towards Harry and Draco behind her, who waved awkwardly at Helen. Helen narrowed her eyes, ''And they just arrived?'' She asked her daughter.

Hermione was a little scared if her mother would find out that they had slept in the same bed, naked after the night they had. ''Uh, yes mum,'' She gulped, not looking her mother in the eyes. ''Mrs. Granger! Lovely to see you; we just wanted to say good morning and surprise to Hermione. We are also staying for the next two weeks in this hotel.'' Draco smoothly said and walked towards the woman in the doorway to kiss her cheeks and almost run back to his own room.

Harry went to hug Helen and also started running back to his room. Hermione glared at their backs, but it seemed that her mother believed the story. Sirius was holding his laughter before Remus slapped the back of his head to silence him. ''We really should explain what is happening, and we will do that, Helen. Please just enjoy your holiday now, and we will tell you at a later moment why we are here.'' Remus said before dragging Sirius away with laughter.

Pansy got back to their room, and they got ready for the day. They got breakfast together with her parents, Draco, Harry, Remus, and Sirius. Dan was happy to have some male companions for the rest of the holiday and started to talk with Remus and Sirius with enthusiasm.

When they got to the pool, Draco was a little uncomfortable at first. Never had he gone to a muggle pool with so many people, but after seeing Hermione in her bikini and Harry in his swimming trousers, he didn't complain. The first week was over before they knew it. Helen and Dan started to hammer the others why they were here, not that they didn't like it, because Hermione was as happy as ever, but it was a little strange.

At night the boys snuck out of their room and went to Hermione and Pansy's room. Pansy would then snuck out to go to their bedroom to sleep there. One morning they had not snuck back yet when the room door suddenly opened. The three teens bolted upright to see Dan standing there fuming.

''What the fuck! Why are you in this room?'' He screamed at them. ''Daddy, please, let me explain.'' Hermione began before she could explain anything. Sirius was at the door with Remus in tow. ''Dan, I know this looks strange, but if you get your wife, we will explain everything,'' Sirius said. Dan was reluctant to go away but still got his wife. Harry, Draco, and Hermione were anxious.

When Helen also walked in, a little confused, they told them everything. About the bond, and how hurtful it was to be apart. They even explained that if they were going to have sex, they would be married and could not be separated by anything, only death. Dan and Helen were shocked, ''And there is nothing we can do to separate them?'' Dan asked the other grown men. Hermione gasped. ''Daddy! NO! I will not be separated from them. They are my soulmates.'' She said in a stern voice, shocking herself when she used soulmates. _When did I start believing that?_ She questioned herself.

''Honey, aren't you a little young to think you have found your soulmate? Even two at that matter?'' Helen tried to reason with her daughter. Hermione was always level headed, that she said something as having soulmates was hard to believe for her parents.

Hermione couldn't help it; her magic lashed out. All the light bulbs shattered in the room, and they could hear glass breaking in the hallway. Harry and Draco put their arms around Hermione in a little group hug and started whispering to her. She calmed instantly at their touch. ''We feel the same Mione, you two are my soulmates, maybe that's why our bond is so strong,'' Draco said to Hermione and Harry.

''Mr. Granger, Mrs. Granger, we did not choose this, but we are happy with the outcome. Draco and Hermione both mean the world to me. We have already experienced a lot together, which isn't going to change in the next couple of years. We are still young and will be careful, but we will not be separated again. The pain we felt just two days was already too much.'' Harry said with confidence. He wasn't going to lose his two soulmates.

Helen and Dan were still a little shaken by the shatterings of the light bulbs in the room. But it was clear that their daughter loved these two boys with everything she had. ''I still don't like it because you are so young.'' Helen started, ''But I understand that the magical world is different than our world, as soon as you got your letter, we knew we would lose you to it.'' Tears were streaming out of her eyes now.

''Mom, you aren't going to lose me.'' Hermione pleaded, also with tears in her eyes. She got up to hug her mother, but her father stopped her. ''Hermione, the world of magic is dangerous for us, and believing your stories it is even more dangerous for you. We would never ask you to leave that world because we know you are more at peace there, but we can't protect you.'' Dan explained, Hermione knew he was right, but she wasn't going to lose her parents.

''Mom, Dad, I know that the magical world is scary, but at this moment, there is nothing for you to fear. I can't promise it will not change in the next couple of years. But right now, I can live in both worlds, and I will do that because I'm not ready to be apart from you, I'm still your little girl.'' She told them in a whisper before throwing her arms around them. Her dad sniffled. ''But you're growing up so fast. You even have two boyfriends!'' He exclaimed, getting a shaky laugh out of everyone.

At that moment, Pansy walked in, ''SO! Apparently, I missed the meeting memo this morning, but can we eat right now? I'm starving, and my lovely greek waitress is waiting for me today.'' She told them with a grin on her face. Everybody got up and went to eat. Hermione knew that this would not be over anytime soon, but she wasn't ready yet to part with her parents. She would put up a fight for them, and her soulmates would help her in every step.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer! I own nothing of the Harry Potter world. I just love to write!

* * *

The holiday in Greece was over before they knew it. Hermione's parents said their goodbyes at the airport. The wizards would all get a portkey back to Potter Manor. The boys had been itching to fly their brooms. As soon as they landed, they went off to the backyard Quidditch pitch.

Hermione got to the library with Remus and Sirius. Sirius had brought a lot of books evolving dark magic from the Black Library. Hopefully, they could get an idea of what they were dealing with.

Pansy was worried and went with them to write a couple of letters. She didn't know what the others were planning but had a project of her own. ''I'm going to try to get Theo here. I don't like the idea of him being with his father at all. You know how he got back from the last break.'' She said to Hermione, Hermione herself was also worried for her friend. She knew his father would not let him go to Potter mansion because of his believes.

''If we don't get a response in the next 48 hours, we will get him out of there,'' Hermione said with certainty. ''Kitten, we need to be careful, his father is a known Death Eater,'' Sirius said to the girls. ''We know, but Sirius. He was tortured. By his father, I - we can't let that happen again.'' Hermione explained, and Sirius went rigid. He had firsthand experience with torture by your parents.

''Then we will do everything to help him, of course, even if this becomes a freaking shelter for abandoned Death Eater children.'' He said with determination. Hermione and Pansy threw their arms around Sirius and hugged him. Pansy went off to write to Theo.

Remus cast a muffiliato charm around the other three occupants of the library. ''We already have an idea that the diary was very black magic if there was a peace of you-know-who in it. Harry explained what happened in the Chamber, and it sounded disturbing, to be frank.'' Remus said to Hermione and Sirius. They would get Draco and Harry involved later, but Harry was not the best at research, and Draco could get his mind off it.

Hermione and Sirius nodded. Harry had reluctantly told them everything that had happened in the Chamber. The taunting from Riddle, Fawkes and the sword, the Basilisk, and Ginny, who was almost drained for her magic. ''It seemed that the fang of the Basilisk helped with destroying the magic in the diary.'' Hermione mused, they needed to start somewhere. She gathered all potion books that could mention Basilisk venom and went to work.

Sirius and Remus started reading the dark tomes from Black Library, trying to find something that mentioned the possession of immobile objects.

After a couple of hours, Pansy came running back into the library. It was already getting late and almost time for dinner. ''Potter fell off his broom! He's clutching his head and screaming.'' The other three wizards were up and running out as soon as they could. Sirius even transformed into Padfoot to run faster.

''Harry! What happened?'' Sirius screamed when they reached the other two teens outside. Draco was kneeling at Harry's side and trying to soothe him. ''I don't know what happened, we were flying down, ready to go inside and suddenly he screamed and fell off his broom. He was almost down, so luckily, he didn't fall far. I can feel his head hurting. Mione! Can you feel it too?'' Draco rushed out, clearly afraid of what was wrong with Harry.

''I can! It is his scar.'' Hermione panted and got down on her knees next to Draco. They hold Harry close, but their magic couldn't do anything to heal him. After what looked like eternity, but was only two minutes, Harry stilled, stopped screaming, and went numb, only breathing heavily. Remus lifted him, and they went inside to Harry's room. Hermione clutched Draco's arm.

Harry woke up when they had just put him on his bed. His eyes were wide, and he looked terrified. ''Harry, what happened?'' Sirius softly asked. Harry was silent for a couple of moments. ''It was- It was Voldemort. He was, well, not really was there - but a wizard was, and he was getting orders from someone or something in a chair. The wizard was bowing to it, and there was a large snake, and-'' He faltered, and tears were streaming down his face. ''-and someone died. I saw it happening. The wizards got an order from Voldemort to kill the man. I felt like he didn't even know what was happening. He was a muggle. It was nothing like how he was in the Chamber. He sounded weak and small. I didn't get a good look because as soon as the chair turned, my head felt like it was exploding in pain. I just know it was him; you've got to believe me.'' Harry pleaded with his godfather.

Sirius had paled at the story but nodded, ''I believe you Harry, of course, no question.'' He said before putting his arms around his godson. Harry trembled but didn't cry anymore. He felt the bed dipping and looked around to see Hermione and Draco joining him on the bed. ''We also believe you Harry, we knew something could happen with _him._ That's why we need to talk to Dumbledore and figure everything out.'' Hermione told him, she put her hand on his head to stroke it in a soothing manner.

''We are with you Harry, you know that,'' Draco said while looking straight at Harry. He could see the sincerity in his eyes. They would follow and help him everywhere he went. ''What I only don't understand is **why** you saw this.'' Remus murmured, at that moment, there was a ticking sound at the window. Everybody looked over to the window to see a phoenix with a letter in its beak. Harry growled. He knew it was Fawkes. So the letter could only be from one person. Dumbledore.

* * *

_My boy!_

_It seems that you may have a problem. I would love to explain everything to you._

_Why don't we meet to talk about it, let's say tonight? The Leaky Cauldron?_

_Fawkes will happily bring your reply back to me._

_Greetings,_

_Dumbledore_

Harry crumbled the letter, anger washing over him in waves. Hermione grabbed the letter to read it, and Draco read with her over her shoulder. Harry could feel their emotions and the anger that started raising in them also. The letter began to smoke, and he grabbed it back and tossed it to Sirius and Remus so they could read it too.

When they finished reading, everybody in the room could sense the tension. Dumbledore wasn't hiding. He was waiting for them. Hermione jumped up from the bed and started pacing. ''That utter- unbelievable- that old goat - what does he think - IF HE THINKS WE WILL GO BACK TO HIM, HE IS SO WRONG! That fucking -'' Hermione screamed, her hair started to spark. Harry loved to see her this passionate, but he didn't want her to hurt herself, and he was shocked that she was swearing.

He stood and stepped in front of her before she could continue and wrapped his arms around her. ''Shh, calm down, Mione, I'm pissed off too, but you are starting to smoke, and you are the best to come up with a plan for this, so I really need you to calm down now.'' He said softly before kissing the top of her head. He felt her arms come up around him to hug him.

''I'll try. But Harry James Potter, if you even think of meeting him alone, you are mistaken!'' She said and slapped him on his arm before hugging him close again. Harry chuckled at her antics. ''Seriously, Harry, you are not going in this without us,'' Draco told him while still sitting on top of the bed. Harry sighed; he knew they wouldn't let him go alone.

''I know, but we need to meet him. Let's face it. He probably knows why I keep seeing these things, and he wants his name cleared. What is the best option for that? Suck up to the 'boy-who-lived.''' Harry said, while rolling his eyes. ''You're mostly right, he's an intelligent, sneaky, untrustworthy wizard, but he also wants to destroy Voldemort,'' Sirius said, obviously struggling to keep his calm.

''Will you all go with me then?'' Harry asked the group. Hermione scoffed and hit him again on his arm and looked up at him like he had to be kidding. Harry smiled down at her and kissed her softly. ''I'll take that as a yes,'' Harry said when he pulled away.

''We should surprise him though, he probably will expect us all to go, so that wouldn't be a surprise,'' Draco thought aloud while rubbing his chin. ''We could meet him right now, but we don't know where he is.'' Hermione chimed in, clearly understanding why a surprise would be best. He would be unprepared and maybe slip something he didn't want them to know.

At that moment, Fawkes made a noise. Everybody looked up at the bird, completely forgotten that the phoenix still was there. Harry locked eyes with the bird and, for some reason, understood what the bird was trying to say. ''Grab hold to the bird,'' Harry said. Everybody looked at him like he had grown three heads but did as was told.

As soon as everybody touched Fawkes, he began to smoke. Draco and Hermione both put a hand on Harry's shoulder. For their own comfort and Harry's. They didn't feel the heat when the phoenix burst in flames, and everything went dark. After a couple of moments, they felt their feet touching the ground, and they opened their eyes.

They were in a small cottage, around them there was old furniture, and it looked like they were in the living room. ''Fawkes? You are back soon. I thought it would be-'' At that moment, Dumbledore walked in the room, shock clear on his face when he saw the group standing there. Hermione, Draco, and Harry already had their wand aimed at the old Headmaster.

''How? Fawkes?!'' Dumbledore yelled. The phoenix just flew to the other side of the room on a perch and started cleaning himself, clearly not bothered by the outburst. ''You wanted to meet Dumbles, we just thought why wait?'' Sirius said while smirking at his wards. Dumbledore visibly shook himself and righted himself to look taller.

''Yes, I did want to meet Harry. Apparently, not alone, but that's just a little inconvenient.'' Dumbledore told them. Sirius rolled his eyes, and Draco and Hermione scoffed. If he even thought of talking to Harry alone, he's crazier than they thought.

Harry stepped forward, ''You wanted to explain everything to me Dumbles, now, talk.'' He practically growled at the old wizard. The twinkle in Dumbledore's eyes was gone now, and he looked hard at the black-haired boy. ''Harry, my boy, you should know it isn't for the faint of heart what I'm going to tell you. Are you sure you want everybody present?'' Dumbledore said he tried to get Harry away from the others.

Sirius and Remus growled at the old wizard, and Hermione and Draco just lifted their wands a little higher at Dumbledore. Dumbledore kept staring at Harry, and he felt a tinkling in his head. He broke eye contact and looked at Hermione and Draco, ''Did you feel that too?'' He asked the two of them.

Draco scowled, ''Yes, I did feel it. Luckily Hermione and I are trained at Occlumens already. That's why he couldn't break into your head that easily.'' He explained. Harry already thought it was because of the bond that Dumbledore couldn't read his mind. During their lessons with Sirius the last couple of months, he hadn't developed the skill of Occlumency, but through the bond, his mind was protected by Draco and Hermione's skill, who were a lot better at it than him.

Harry looked back at Dumbledore, who was visibly shocked at the revelation that they knew he tried to read his mind. ''Keep out of my mind, and start explaining old man,'' Harry said to Dumbledore. Dumbledore shook himself. ''How did Draco and Hermione protect you?'' He asked with awe in his voice. ''You don't need to know that.'' Harry snapped. ''You said in your letter you would explain what is happening. I want to know why I keep seeing things related to Voldemort, and what that diary was from second year with Voldemort attached to it.'' Harry said to Dumbledore.

Dumbledore looked hard at Harry for a few moments before he sighed and sat down in a chair. ''It's a long story, Harry. I didn't want you to know for at least a couple of years, but I'm afraid that time is running out.'' He explained, and for the first time, he seemed sincere and afraid. Hermione and Draco lowered their wands as did Harry, and they sat down together on the couch.

Sirius and Remus stood behind them, clearly not letting their guard down and watching Dumbledore as a hawk. Dumbledore sighed again and conjured tea and small bites.

''You see, there was a reason why you and your parents were targeted all those years ago. Voldemort had heard part of a prophecy, but only part of it. That's why everything went wrong for him on that night. There also is a reason why he didn't vanish completely. You already saw in your first year that he isn't gone when you face him because of the stone. And in your second year with the diary. You see, that diary belonged to him in his younger years, but he added extremely dark magic to it.'' Dumbledore started, looking like his mind was far away.

''What kind of prophecy?'' Harry asked; Dumbledore looked at him and recited the prophecy.

" _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies..._ "

Harry paled, and Hermione and Draco put their arms around him. ''What was the part Voldemort heard?'' He asked softly. ''He only heard; _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...''_ That's why he targeted you, but he marked you as his equal because he did that. That's why you can talk to snakes because that was a skill he could do as the heir of Slytherin.'' Dumbledore explained.

''How did he transfer that skill?'' Sirius asked. When Harry looked at him, he looked livid. Dumbledore sighed again and looked like he was a hundred years older. ''The dark magic that he added to the diary, it also transferred to Harry. It's in Harry's scar. That's also the reason you can see things or feel things he feels or sees.'' Dumbledore said while looking at every one of them.

Harry rubbed his scar, ''You told me that because of my mother's protection he couldn't touch me. That's why he vanished and why he disintegrated in my first year, right?'' He asked the old wizard. ''Yes, that's part of it. I will explain what the dark magic is what's embedded in you and was in the diary. You hopefully haven't heard of it, but what he created were called Horcruxes.'' Harry heard Remus and Sirius gasp. When he looked at Sirius, he saw tears streaming down his face.

''NO! That's not possible! You said he already created one with the diary; he would not create more of them, right? That's the vilest thing I've ever heard,'' Sirius screamed. ''Sirius, we are talking about the Dark Lord. He would do anything for eternal life.'' Dumbledore told him with patience. ''However, I come to believe he didn't stop at the diary. I think he created far more.'' Dumbledore looked down. He didn't want to share this information, but he couldn't stop now.

''Sirius? What's a Horcrux?'' Harry asked when Sirius went to sit down at the information Dumbledore just told them. Sirius looked pained and looked like he didn't want to share this information either. ''If it's in my head, I have the right to know!'' Harry snarled and stood up. Followed by Hermione and Draco.

Sirius looked at them and sighed. ''I will tell you, sit down, it's horrible. I really wish I could keep you away from this. But after what we just have been told, it isn't possible. Because you apparently need to defeat Voldemort.'' Sirius said with disdain and a defeated look.

''Tell us, Sirius.'' Harry pleaded. ''A Horcrux is a dark artifact, created to attach a soul to an object. If your soul is attached, you can use it to come back to life, even if you are killed. The manner to create such a foul thing is to kill someone. Because if you kill, your soul is ripped. If you cut a peace apart and attach it to something, you can live forever because your soul isn't complete to move on to the next life.'' He explained. Harry had sat down again with Hermione and Draco. Hermione had tears in her eyes by the thought of such a vile thing in Harry's head.

Draco was rubbing soothing circles on Harry's back to ease him a bit. Harry felt empty. He knew there was a reason for everything he's been through from the age of one, but to have it confirmed he was a freak was hard to take in. He felt small arms around him and looked at Hermione. ''I can feel what you're feeling, Harry, please, do not think that we don't love you because of this. We will always be there for you, and we will keep loving you. We will find a way to help you and destroy that awful, pathetic excuse of a wizard.'' She said with determination.

''Why, Hermione? Dumbles just told us that the Dursley's were right, I'm a freak.'' He whispered. Draco scoffed, drawing Harry's attention to him. ''Harry, the only freaks were them, how they treated you because they were afraid, we love you, you are not alone in this.'' He said to Harry and kissed him on his forehead. Harry felt a lot better, probably because Hermione and Draco were projecting love into him through the bond, but he didn't mind.

''Dumbledore, you said you think he created far more, how many?'' Remus asked, also looking pale. ''I believe he was trying to create seven, I only don't know if he succeeded that number yet,'' Dumbledore explained. ''I also don't know what they could be. I know he had a fascination with Hogwarts and their houses. So it's possible he used something of them if he found them, I also don't think he is aware of Harry being one.'' Dumbledore told them, the twinkle in his eyes was back. Harry only could think that that wasn't a good sign.

''What are you planning, Dumbles?'' Harry growled. ''Well, my boy, we can use this in our advantage, if we can find the Horcruxes and destroy them all at once, he will be weak enough to be destroyed. And because he doesn't know you two are linked, we can use the information you can give to us through that connection.'' He said with vigor.

''Absolutely not! You will not use my pup for your plans!'' Sirius screamed at the old man. ''Sirius, please see why we need to find out how we could extract the Horcrux from Harry without killing him. That's reason enough to wait, isn't it?'' Dumbledore said smugly, knowing they would not risk Harry's life. Sirius deflated completely, clearly that he didn't think of that.

''Sirius, I don't like it either, but Dumbles is right, we need to find out how we can extract it from Harry, and maybe we can use occlumency to keep him out Harry's head for now,'' Remus said, kneeling next to the broken man. Harry nodded, ''I don't like it either Padfoot, but he has a point. We can use this. It seems like he's becoming stronger. What if he returns completely?''

Sirius nodded, ''I just got you back pup, I'm not going to lose you again. We will do anything we can to destroy him and keep you safe.''

Dumbledore clapped in his hands, ''Excellent! Now we just need to find out-'' He was interrupted by Harry sneering at him. ''We are not going to anything with you Dumbles. We, meaning, Sirius, Remus, Draco, Hermione, and I will find out what the other Horcruxes are and find a way to destroy them. This meeting is over, we will not turn you in, again, but you will leave us alone.'' He stood, and everybody followed.

''But- Harry- my boy! You cannot possibly think that you can defeat him without me!'' Dumbledore screamed at Harry. ''Yes we can. We don't need your help. You only want to use me as a weapon. I'm not yours to control. I will defeat him without you!'' Harry sneered at the old wizard. Dumbledore deflated at Harry's anger, ''I want him gone just as much as you do, Harry.'' Dumbledore said softly.

''I understand. Maybe if there's going to be a clash between light and dark, you will know.'' Harry said, and he walked back to Fawkes. ''Can you take us back, boy?'' Fawkes nodded as if he understood them. He waited until everybody had a hold of him when he again went up in flames. After a few moments, they were back at Potter Manor, and Fawkes flew away again through the window.

The door opened, and Pansy stuck her head in the room. ''So! What did I miss? You were all gone. I really felt left out! Going on adventures without me, how dare you!'' She told them while crossing her arms and scowling at the group. ''Yeah, I'm not dealing with that,'' Sirius said with a smirk, and he pulled Remus away and out of the room.

Draco sighed, ''Pans, you don't want to know. Potter attracts trouble. You know that, right?'' He said, earning a slap on the back of his head by Harry. ''Pansy, we will tell you, but first, I really need a shower, and a couple of hours sleep,'' Harry scrunched up his nose and felt exhausted.

Hermione hugged Harry, ''I will explain it to her, then we will talk to Remus and Sirius, we need more protection here and at Hogwarts.'' She said and went to the door while pulling Pansy with her. Draco let out a breath, ''You know what this means, right?'' He said, pulling Harry into his arms.

Harry nodded against Draco's chest. ''You are all in danger because of me,'' Harry said. He immediately got a slap at the back of his head. ''No, you idiot, it means that we are going into this fight, not blind and not alone. But it also means that we are going up against Death Eaters,'' Draco said. He was thinking of his father, and it scared him more than he was ready to admit.

Harry seemed to understand him at once and kissed Draco's collarbone. ''We will be together, we are stronger together. We will be prepared and do anything to win this. You are one of us now, don't forget it.'' Harry said to Draco. Draco hugged him harder. ''Now go shower, and get some sleep. I will see you in the morning,'' Draco said while pulling away, he kissed Harry softly before going out of the room.

Harry stepped into the shower with a million thoughts. The most prominent was the worry about his scar and the Horcrux within—followed suit by the concern he had for his soulmates. How was he supposed to keep them safe? He got out of the shower and dried himself with his wand and got into his bedroom. He really was tired but didn't want to sleep without Draco or Hermione tonight. He decided to look for them and found them in the library with Sirius, Remus, and Pansy.

They had all very dark looking books in their hands, and he smiled. They would find a way to get this done, hopefully without casualties.


	18. Chapter 18

**I still don't own Harry Potter, but I love to fantasize!**

* * *

It was a couple of days later, and Pansy was getting nervous. She still hadn't heard anything from Theo. ''Draco, have you heard anything from Theo since the start of brake?'' She asked the blond wizard. Who started to frown.

''No, I've sent him a couple of letters, but no reply. How long is it since you have written to him?'' Draco asked from his seat in the library where the whole group was reading, still checking for Horcruxes. Sirius looked up from his book, clearly listening to the conversation.

''It's been two days, Sirius, we already talked about it, but I think we need to do something. The last time after the break, he was in bad shape. His father used Crucio on him. He had to drink nerve tonic for three weeks.'' Pansy stated the other teens nodded somberly at the memory.

Draco stood, ''I know where he lives. We can go and get him, right?'' He asked Sirius, who looked doubtful. ''I don't know if that's possible, pup. If he's disowned, we can take him in, of course, but if we kidnap him, his father can claim line theft. We could get into serious trouble. I ran away from home and was disowned. After that, the Potter's took me in.'' He explained to the group of teens.

Harry walked to Draco and put a hand on his shoulder. He noticed that Draco was shaking with anger. There should be a solution. ''Can't we do the same with Theo as Hermione, and I did with me? Go to Gringotts and get him emancipated?'' Harry told the group, and Hermione nodded along. Draco kissed him with enthusiasm. ''You're brilliant! He gets abused just like you did, so there is enough reason to get him emancipated!'' Draco looked at Sirius for the support that this was a great idea.

Sirius grinned at them, ''Yes, that could work, but now we only need to get him.'' Sirius turned serious again. Pansy snapped her fingers. ''The world cup! He also was going with his father. We could get him then. I'm not too fond of the prospect that he will be with his father until then, but we can get him then and the day after we can get to Gringotts to finalize it.'' Everybody nodded along with that idea.

''We should send him a message. He should know what we are planning,'' Draco said after thinking about it a little more. ''Maybe you can send him a Patronus message. The order used those back in the day, they cannot be intercepted, and the message would be there within minutes, unlike an owl.'' Remus suggested.

''We only just started with the Patronus charm. Do you think we can work it out in time?'' Draco was a little skeptical. The attempts he had were not nearly as good as the ones of Harry or Hermione. ''Draco, we just need a little more practice, and you need the happiest thought of all. I don't think you used the right one.'' Hermione chided.

Draco scoffed and looked uncertain. ''Mione, you don't even know which one I used. Why wouldn't it be good enough?'' He asked. Hermione smirked and walked up to her boys and tugged them along with her out of the library and into their bedroom. She closed the door and turned to look at Harry and Draco, who both looked a little confused.

''Why did you bring us here, Mione?'' Harry asked his girlfriend. ''Well, I want to know what you two were thinking of for the Patronus charm, and I needed a little privacy to tell you mine.'' She pulled her wand out of the holster and said, _Expecto Patronum._ A beautiful silver otter erupted from her wand. She let it play a little before canceling the spell.

Harry grinned, ''It's beautiful Mione, when did you get the spell?'' Hermione smiled at him, ''After I changed my happy memory, the first couple of times I was thinking of when I got my Hogwarts letter. That memory wasn't powerful enough. My current memory is the first time I got to kiss you both, and our first night in Greece.'' She blushed crimson and cleared her throat.

Harry and Draco looked at each other and laughed. Hermione both slapped them softly on their arms but also smiled at them fondly. ''Okay, I was thinking of my first time on a broom. But maybe I need a change to.'' Harry said thoughtfully and also got his wand out. ''Expecto Patronum.'' He said, and out of the tip of his wand erupted a beautiful silver stag.

''Prongs,'' Harry whispered, and he smiled at the image of his father's animagus form. The Patronus walked to him, and he put his hand against his snout before the mist dispersed. Hermione walked up to him and hugged him tightly. ''He would have been so proud, Harry.'' She told him. Harry nodded and hugged her tight before letting go and giving a kiss on the top of her head.

''What were you thinking of now, Harry?'' Draco asked; he was very curious. ''I thought of our first kiss in our dorm, and the first time Hermione called us her soulmates.'' He smirked at Hermione, who was again blushing. Draco laughed, the last couple of times he was thinking about his mother, but maybe after what had happened, he should use another.

Harry and Hermione were looking at him expectantly. He was thinking about which one he could use. His first kiss with Harry was amazing, so that was something he could use or the first time he slept in the same bed as Harry, or when Hermione was comforting him the whole night, and they slept together in the same bed. The first time that they used the bond in the shower. That was definitely one he could use. He decided he would think of all of them. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the memories.

''Expecto Patronum!'' Draco said, still with his eyes closed. He heard Hermione and Harry gasp and opened his eyes; in front of them, there was a big lion with magnificent manes. Harry started to laugh, but Hermione looked amazed. ''You-got-a-lion! Draco, I didn't know you were a Gryffindor at heart.'' Harry said while laughing and gasping for air.

Hermione hit Harry at the back of his head to shut him up. ''Auwh! Mione!'' He put a hand on the back of his head and scowled at her. ''Don't laugh at him then! I think it has a beautiful meaning!'' Hermione scolded. ''What do you mean, Hermione? What does the lion mean? Because I'm indeed baffled as to why I have a lion.'' Draco said, looking confused.

''It represents ego and self-awareness, it also represents a generous character and passion. You are a passionate person Draco, and you are generous with the people you love. It seems fitting to me.'' Hermione explained while smiling fondly at Draco.

He was touched, to say the least, that she made this assessment of him. He put his arms around Hermione and kissed her temple. She giggled a little but hugged him tightly. ''Well, now I feel like an ass at laughing, but it is fitting. What do a stag and otter mean, Mione?''

''A stag stands for kindness, innocence, sentiment, love, grace, and humility. The stag is also called the horned god.'' She rolled her eyes a little at the last bit but smiled at Harry, who was smirking at her.

''The otter is friendly, independent and unconventional. She is brave, resourceful, and alert. But sometimes, she is tactless and quirky.'' Hermione smiled at the assessment of her own Patronus. It suited her character very well. Harry kissed her cheek and pecked Draco on his lips.

''We should go back to Remus to get explained how we can send messages through them,'' Draco said, and he let Hermione reluctantly go to get back to the library. When they walked in, they saw Pansy listening to Sirius and Remus telling a wild story about their Hogwarts years.

''And that's why you should never trust a blue liquid! Ah! Pups! Everything okay?'' Sirius asked. Harry, Hermione, and Draco looked at each other and together said, ''Expecto Patronum!'' A silver stag, otter, and lion erupted from their wands. Remus and Sirius looked stunned, and Pansy pouted.

''You three really need to include me more with this, I want to do one too!''

''Pans, think of the happiest thing you ever experienced. You also can combine a couple of your memories. That worked with us,'' Hermione happily explained to her best friend. Pansy scrunched up her nose and thought hard.

''Expecto Patronum!'' She shouted, a bright silver mist erupted, but you couldn't see what animal it should be. Pansy sighed, but it was already more than she expected. Hermione hugged her and started whispering in her ear. Pansy smiled and hugged Hermione close.

Sirius and Remus were still looking at the silver stag. It seemed that Sirius was close to tears. ''I know, it's a stag just like dad,'' Harry said softly. Remus nodded and smiled brightly. ''Amazing! It's terrific that you can summon your Patronus at this young age. Do you want to learn how to send a message?'' Remus started to laugh when he saw Hermione bobbing her head wildly. Draco and Harry also nodded.

''Great, so it's really simple, I'll show you,'' Remus started explaining what they needed to do. When they were ready, they could send a message to Theo, and the rest of the plan could begin.

* * *

Finally, after two more weeks, the world cup was there. Draco was nervous. They would kind of kidnap Theo today; hopefully, everything went okay. It also didn't help that he was excited to see his team win the Quidditch world cup.

''Potter! Granger! Come on! You two are dreadfully slow today.'' Draco almost pushed a half-sleeping Hermione into the bathroom at three in the morning. Their portkey would be leaving at four; then they would lounge in their tent before the game would start.

Harry grumbled something unintelligible under his breath when he woke from Draco's enthusiasm and put a pillow over his head. Draco smirked and dived onto the bed on Harry to wake him up.

''OEFH! Buggering shit! BLACK! GET OF ME!'' Harry scolded, trying to push his blonde boyfriend off him. ''Nope,'' Draco said while starting to tickle Harry's sides. Harry, being incredibly ticklish, tried to retaliate. Without succeeding, after a couple of minutes, he was gasping for air between laughs.

Hermione got back into the bedroom with a fond smile on her face when she spotted her boyfriends wrestling on top of the bed. ''Harry, the bathroom is free, please hurry, we need to get down and eat something before we go.''

''Yes, honey,'' Harry said with rolling his eyes at Draco, who chuckled at him. Hermione acted like she didn't hear a thing and got dressed and started to pack her overnight bag.

When they were ready and in the dining room, they ate a small breakfast. Remus and Sirius joined them, and everybody was talking a little because it was still in the middle of the night, and everybody was a bit cranky and tired. At last, Pansy walked into the dining room, looking like she might faint if she didn't get her coffee fast.

''Pans, are you ready for our mission today?'' Draco said while practically jumping up and down. He sure as hell wasn't a morning person, but with the thought of seeing his best friend again today - who was going to stay with them for the rest of the summer no matter what happened. And being excited about the Quidditch finals, and just feeling a lot happier than he had ever been, did something wonderful for his hyper behavior today.

''Ugh, Dra, please, if I need to put up with you today, I need a hell lot more coffee,'' Pansy grumbled while putting her head at the table. ''I don't even like Quidditch.'' She said while pounding her head a little at the tabletop. Hermione giggled and stroked Pansy's head fondly.

''We are ready, love. We just need to send a message to Theo, so he knows what to expect after the game.''

''Can we do that now? It's late in the morning, so he should be alone, right?'' Draco asked while looking at Remus and Sirius. Sirius nodded, ''I only think we need to send Hermione's Patronus. It's probably the least intimidating. I don't think he would like it much if there is suddenly a lion or stag standing next to his bed.'' Sirius said while looking far away with a smirk on his face as if he was imaging precisely the reaction someone would have if there were a ghostly lion next to him.

Draco nodded and looked at Hermione, ''Please, Mione. Could you send the message?'' Hermione nodded and stood. ''Expecto Patronum.'' She said firmly. When the otter erupted, he looked quizzically around. When he saw no threat, he waited for orders.

''Hello, Theo, we missed you! We know something is wrong and are going to get you away from your father after the game. Wait for us at campsite 15, place 432. The tent is heavily warded, but you can get in. Please go in even if we are not there yet. Love the silver trio and Pans.'' Hermione finished, and the otter darted away.

Draco came up to Hermione and put his arms around her while kissing her. She was amazing, he knew she had grown fond of Theo, but he also knew she was doing this mainly for Pansy and him. Hermione hummed contently against him.

''Okay, lovebirds, it's way too early to such each other faces like that,'' Pansy grumbled while Harry, Sirius, and Remus laughed. ''Come on, everybody has their overnight bags? The portkey is leaving in five minutes.'' Remus said while looking at his wristwatch.

Everybody got up and took their bags with them. Harry had his invisibility cloak so they could get Theo out without being noticed. Hermione had nerve tonic and other potions for Theo. She knew them all and knew how best to administer them.

All of them crowded a rope and put a finger on it. After a minute, a familiar pull took them away. Draco landed hard on the ground but kept standing, after looking around he saw Harry sprawled on the ground and Draco laughed at the picture, Hermione was sitting on her bum, she also hadn't kept her balance. Pansy helped her up her feet.

Sirius and Remus were smirking at their wards. Their family had grown a lot in just a year. Tonight it would become bigger if everything went right. Draco was still bouncing on his feet and felt a little weird in his muggle clothes, but being together with Hermione and Harry, he wore them more often.

He looked around and saw a man approaching him. Sirius stepped forward, putting himself between the man and his wards, his gut was saying it was safe, but he wouldn't let anything happen to them.

''Goodmorning, you are here for the camping?'' The man said when he was close enough. Sirius nodded, and the man beckoned them to follow him. ''You guys at least seem normal, a lot of the campers who have come are looking strange like they had a five-year-old dress them, and somebody actually tried to pay me with gold coins! Could you believe it?'' The man said indignantly.

Pansy and Hermione giggled together when they heard the muggle raging about the wizards who didn't know any better. Sirius smirked and Remus, and he chatted a little with the man. Draco was getting more nervous when they set foot on the campsite. A lot could go wrong before they got Theo, but he would be damned if he let his best mate return to his abusive father.

Harry nudged him a little, feeling the nervous vibes from Draco. ''Everything is going to be okay, he will go home with us and tomorrow morning as soon as possible, we will get to Gringotts to get him free of his father's clutches,'' Harry said to Draco while putting an arm around his shoulders.

Draco leaned into Harry for a moment and felt calm washing through him. He looked at Harry, who was sending the relaxed feelings towards him, trough the bond. He smirked at his wizard, who had changed a lot since last year.

They got to their plot and into their tent. On the outside, it was small, but when they got in, it looked like a chateau with ten bedrooms and five bathrooms. Pansy and Hermione were in awe and darted through the tent to see everything.

Draco and Harry got Hermione's bag and went into the room with an extra-large bed for the three of them. Sirius had put it there special for the Triad so they could keep sleeping in the same bed. Since their vacation in Greece, they hadn't slept apart.

Sirius and Remus got into the kitchen and grabbed something strong to drink. Harry, Hermione, Draco, and Pansy were settled in their bedrooms and got outside to look for the Weasley's who also were on campsite 15.

They were walking a while and saw a lot of their friends from school. When they finally reached the Weasley's, they felt rather tired. Ginny, Pansy, and Hermione started talking, and Ginny told them about Cedric, who portkeyed with them to the camping.

''I swear Mione, he's so freaking cute. A little older than us, but so cute.'' Ginny told them, Pansy didn't look convinced that Cedric was cute, but that would be rather difficult because he wasn't a girl. Hermione giggled because she remembered Cedric from Hogwarts. Draco and Harry both scowled at her, which did not help her giggles.

''Harry, Draco, you have nothing to worry about,'' Hermione said with a smirk. They didn't look convinced, and she carried on. ''Let's just say that I'm definitely not his type.'' Harry and Draco looked at her like she was mad.

Ginny groaned, ''Seriously? He's gay? That so ruins it.'' Hermione started to laugh again and just nodded her head. Draco en Harry looked pleased with themselves that Cedric wasn't a treat to swoop down and take Hermione away.

The twins were entertaining the other teens, and Ron was luckily gone. They also met the older Weasley brothers and liked them a lot. Bill was telling them stories about his adventures in Egypt for his job, and Charlie was explaining the difficulty of working with temperamental dragons.

After a couple of hours, they got back to their tent, the four of them exhausted. They still could sleep a couple of hours before the final would begin. Even Draco was tired after being insufferable for most of the day because of his nerves and excitement.

When Sirius waked them up, they hastily dressed and went to the stadium. It was huge, and all the teens stopped and stared for a moment, just taking in the big stadium.

They got seated, and they were in the same box as the Weasley's. Putting all the brothers and Ginny between the trio and Ron, they got seated. Just before the start of the game, new people strode in the box. When Draco turned, he froze on the spot.

Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy stood in the entrance, Lucius was watching Draco and everybody seated with distaste and a scowl in place. Narcissa looked longingly towards her son, but couldn't do anything. She couldn't hold him or talk to him, and it broke her heart.

''Well, what do we have here,'' Lucius sneered at his son. Who didn't move an inch, Sirius put his hand on Draco's shoulder for support but was immensely proud that Draco didn't withdraw at the face of Lucius.

''Lucius, still not a resident at Azkaban then? What a shame. Please go on. My son here doesn't need any bad influence.'' Sirius said while gripping Draco's shoulder tight. Draco felt touched that Sirius thought of him as his son and looked at him with unfiltered adoration.

Sirius smiled fondly back and turned his eyes back at Lucius, who had gone red in the face at his words. Narcissa's eyes shone with fresh tears, which she did not dare to let fall. ''You bastard! How dare you insinuate that I belong in prison. I'm not a deranged dog who needs his collar.'' Lucius sneered at Sirius.

Sirius got up and took out his wand, Remus tried to calm him down, but Harry also stood with his wand aimed at Lucius. Draco and Hermione tried to calm Harry down. He could use magic outside of Hogwarts, but they didn't need that attention right now.

Draco kissed Harry on the side of his mouth and whispered that Lucius wasn't worth it, Hermione kissed Harry's cheek, and he let his wand arm down. His eyes never leaving Lucius, who was turning red again at the show of affection from his son. Lucius snarled and aimed his wand at the group.

Before he could utter a spell, all of the Weasley's had their wands aimed at Lucius, well, almost all, Ron was still seated and tried to ignore everything around him. Clearly outnumbered, Lucius brought his arm down and tugged at Narcissa's robes to follow him.

Narcissa was still transfixed on Draco but reluctantly followed. As soon as they were out of sight, Draco slumped against his chair. Hermione and Harry put their arms around him and comforted him.

After a couple of minutes, they started to feel better, and they sat back to enjoy the game. First, the mascots of Ireland and Bulgaria came out. They saw all of the men panting after the part Veela's. Ron was almost jumping out of the box and needed to be restrained by Bill.

Harry and Draco looked at each other and shrugged. They didn't feel any appeal towards the Veela's. Hermione beamed at them and pulled them down for a searing kiss. They grinned at her and took her hands before going back to watching the starting game.

Ireland won against Bulgaria even when the snitch was caught by the Bulgarian seeker. They cheered and jumped with the Weasley's and most of the stadium.

Pansy grabbed Hermione's hand and whispered something in her ear. Hermione nodded and turned towards Draco and Harry, whispering that Pansy had spotted Theo, and he was already hurrying down back to the campsite. The got up and hurried after saying goodbye to Ginny. Sirius and Remus followed them swiftly.

When they entered the tent, they saw the relieved face of their friend Theo. Pansy tackled him in a bone-crushing hug and whispered to him how afraid she was that he was hurt. Theo patted her back and looked over her shoulder at Draco.

Draco swallowed. Theo looked like he was dragged through hell. His face had bruises, and he could see that his hands were twitching again. He had paled a lot during the summer and clearly lost weight he couldn't miss.

Pansy let go of Theo and Draco enveloped him in a tight hug. ''Are you - I know you aren't - but - '' Draco tried to ask his best friend if he was okay, but he already knew the answer. Theo chuckled softly. ''I missed you to arsehole.'' Draco sniffed but let the insult pass.

Draco heard Sirius behind him and let Theo go. ''Theo, we have a plan. Tomorrow we will go to Gringotts to get you emancipated. Then you never have to return to your father.'' Draco explained Pansy nodded along.

Theo put on a wry smile. ''Where would I go, Draco? I can't go back to Hogwarts if I'm not under my father's thumb.'' Theo responded with apprehension.

Pansy scoffed and slapped the back of his head. ''I did it too, Draco also left his parent's thumb. Don't you dare think we wouldn't do the same with you. You are one of us now.'' She said firmly. Theo smiled at her and then looked towards Sirius and Remus.

Remus smiled kindly and nodded, Sirius grinned. ''Of course, you can stay with us, at this moment we are staying at Potter Manor, Harry already gave permission, and we have a room ready for you. You don't need to worry about money. We will take care of you.'' Sirius said softly.

Theo was tearing up, and Hermione got her bag with nerve tonic to give it to him. Hermione and Harry got to their room to give Theo some space and privacy. After half an hour, Draco asked them to come back because Theo wanted to speak to all of them.

''Okay, I'm ready to destroy my father completely. Tonight he and other Death Eaters have planned to attack the camp and torture the muggles and muggle-borns if they can find them. We need to do something about it.'' Theo all told them. Sirius and Remus started conversing about what they could do to prevent this.

''Can't we just call the Aurors? Surely they can handle this?'' Pansy asked with a little fear in her voice. Harry shook his head, ''I don't think anybody will believe us like this. Especially the Ministry. Maybe Madam Bones. We could contact her? She is the head of DMLE. If she believes us, there could be made precautions.'' Harry thought aloud.

''Yes, I think that's the best option, and we need to inform the Weasley's. They can help us.'' Sirius added. Hermione nodded and conjured her Patronus to send a message to the Weasley's to meet them at their tent.

Harry did the same but send it to Madam Bones. After five minutes, the Weasley clan all came in, even Ron and Ginny. ''Everyone under the age of 17 needs to stay here, we do not want any problems from the minister for underage magic,'' Arthur said, instantly getting groans from his four youngest children.

Sirius looked at his pups and knew he couldn't make them stay, but tried anyway. ''Harry can perform magic because he is emancipated, the rest of you cannot. I know you want to help, but - '' He was interrupted by Hermione.

''Sirius, I just cast a Patronus, and this is not the first time this summer, wouldn't we already have gotten owls because we are performing magic at our house when we train with you?'' She asked, everybody in the tent looked at her and clearly hadn't thought about that.

''Well, if you put it that way. Do you want to come, or do you want to stay here?'' Sirius asked, looking at his pups. Harry, Draco, and Hermione all wanted to come with Sirius and Remus to help. They had extra training, after all. Pansy would stay behind to look after Theo, who was put out that he didn't get a chance to stand up against his father.

At that moment they were interrupted by a badger Patronus with Madam Bones' voice. _We are outside your tent; please let us in to discuss this matter._

Remus went out to get the DMLE head and the Aurors she had brought with her. There were ten in total. Madam Bones explained that she only got the ones she could trust with her. The teens that would stay behind all got to the spare bedrooms. The Aurors looked wary when Harry, Draco, and Hermione stayed with them.

''Why are they here? Surely you don't expect them to help us do you?'' One of the Aurors said to Sirius. He growled in response, ''You could learn something from them. They are a bonded Triad; they have more power, then you could imagine.'' He said to the accusing Auror, who turned white and looked at the teens.

All of the adults stared in awe at the Triad; they were becoming a little uncomfortable at the stares. Madam Bones cleared her throat and demanded everybody's attention. She explained how they would work. As much as they could, they needed to operate in the shadows. The Aurors needed proof that the Death Eaters were intending on hurting people before they could arrest them.

Everybody knew the plan and got broken up in groups. They agreed on a signal of red sparks when somebody needed help. Harry, Hermione, Draco, and Bill would be one group, to much dismay of Remus and Sirius. They didn't want to leave their pups, but four were the largest they could get by if they wanted to go unnoticed.

* * *

They walked back towards the stadium to check if they saw any trouble, but nobody stood out. Draco looked calm, but Hermione and Harry could feel his inner turmoil.

He knew his father would be there, and if Lucius saw him, he would stop at nothing to get revenge for his humiliation, but he wouldn't back down for this fight. He was here for his soulmates and the justice towards the muggles and muggle-born witches and wizards.

Suddenly they saw red sparks to their right, and they started to run. When they got into a clearing, they saw Death Eaters dueling with the Aurors. They saw Remus and Sirius back to back, dueling five opponents.

The Triad glanced at each other and poured into the fight. When they worked together, they were flawless. Everybody who dared to approach them would get blasted away, petrified, bound, or unconscious. They stood in a perfect triangle, overlooking the battlefield and watching each other backs.

A flash from Hermione's right got her attention. She saw the figure apparating close to them, and he wore a terrifying smile. You could see that the man was insane, probably been his whole life. He sneered at her, and before she could react, he yelled, ''CRUCIO!''

She gasped but stayed footed. She felt the pain throbbing through her, but it was numbed down because of their bond. Draco and Harry both tensed when they felt the spell trying to torture Hermione. They finished their duels fast and turned towards her, looks of concern met a look full of determination.

She looked at her attacker, who was dumbfounded that she wasn't withering on the ground in pain. He tried to escape but thought better of it and started throwing curses at the young witch. She blocked all of his attempts easy, and a creepy smile was forming on Hermione's lips.

''BOMBARDA MAXIMA!'' She bellowed when he took a breath before casting again. The figure flew back with debris from the ground and a nearby three. When he fell on the ground, you could hear a crunch of a couple of bones.

She looked around and saw that Harry and Draco looked at her with awe and adoration; she blushed under their attention. ''You are freaking scary, sometimes Mione,'' Harry said with a fond smile.

''I know, come on, it's not done yet.'' They looked around and saw the fighting wearing down. A lot of Death Eaters were on the ground, bound or unconscious. They saw that Remus was bleeding from his head and Sirius was battling two wizards at once, Draco saw in an instance that one of the Death Eaters was his father. The regal stance he had was enough to recognize him.

Draco ran towards Sirius. Harry and Hermione on his heels. When they finally reached them, Sirius had already taken out the other wizard, only Lucius remained. They battled like beasts, Sirius was getting closer to Lucius. They didn't understand until Lucius was within arms reach, and Sirius pulled back his fist and punched Lucius in the face.

Lucius did not expect that and went down. His mask was slipping, and everybody could see it was Lucius Malfoy. Sirius had known this already when he started the duel. That was the main reason he punched him in the face.

All the Death Eaters were down and bound after that. The Aurors were transporting them to holding cells, and it looked like the operation was a great success. Until they saw the Dark Mark in the sky, it was a couple of hundred meters back to the campsite, and everybody froze.

Back in the war against Voldemort, the Dark Mark meant that somebody had died. Harry, Draco, and Hermione took off running towards the Mark with Remus and Sirius on their heels, trying to stop them.

They got into another clearing and saw nobody, only the Dark Mark above them. ''They apparated away. We should get back to the tent and get home. No need to stay here now.'' Remus said reluctantly. It had been a very long day.

The trio looked at each other and knew that one of the Death Eather's had gotten away and conjured the Mark. They needed to be very careful because everybody could now know how powerful they were as a Triad. It looked like it was going to be an interesting year at Hogwarts.

* * *

**WHOEP! Up to the fourth year, very happy to write this!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter universe, that's JK Rowling!**

* * *

The next morning everything went by in a storm. The Prophet already had published the story about the attack on the campsite. Even the ministry couldn't deny it that it had been Death Eather's. Thanks to the Dark Mark hanging in the sky. They didn't find any dead luckily, but the fear it brought was hanging in the air.

Theo got to Gringotts with Remus the very next morning. His father had one of the arrested Death Eaters, so nobody could stop him from getting emancipated. When they got back, he was looking way too smug.

''Okay, Theo, what did you do?'' Draco asked as soon he saw his best friend. ''Who? Me? I didn't do anything at all. Everybody always thinks the nastiest things about me.'' Theo responded with mock hurt. Earning a snort from Draco and a raised eyebrow.

Remus walked in and chuckled. ''He emptied his trust fund, and two off the six Nott vaults. His father is in prison, so he was Lord Nott at the moment; he could do anything with the vaults as he pleased.''

Theo looked smug again, and Draco laughed. ''Why just two of the six vaults?'' The grin Theo got on his face was a little terrifying, but Draco knew it wasn't aimed at him.

''Because he will not notice it, you know he's going to be out of prison with a month, he will learn that his heir has run away and changed his name, and later when he wants to drain his vaults, he will learn that two of them already are empty, and the other four only can be opened by the heir of Nott, I changed the wards, so nobody can reach the vaults anymore because there are no other heirs of Nott,'' Theo explained, while smirking.

Draco was impressed and nodded. ''That's very Slytherin of you, but you said you changed your name, to what did you change it?''

Remus smiled fondly and grasped Theo's shoulder. Theo looked up and smirked. ''I changed it to Lupin. Theo Lupin at your service.'' He said with a bow.

''I adopted Theo to change his name, he is still emancipated, but I also am his guardian,'' Remus explained. Theo nodded excitedly with Remus's explanation. ''Think about how my father will burst of anger when he learns that a werewolf adopted me! I LOVE IT!'' He yelled, excited.

Remus laughed at the enthusiasm Theo showed. Sirius, Harry, Hermione, and Pansy walked in and got the short version of what had happened. Everybody got a good laugh out of it.

The teens still needed al lot of stuff for the new school year. The boys all groaned when they read that they needed dress robes. They got to Diagon Alley and got their supplies for the new school year and the robes they required. Of course, they had to drag Hermione out of the book shop together with Remus, who also loved books.

When they got back to Potter mansion, Harry, Hermione, and Draco got to their room to relax and be together for their bond. The stress they had shared yesterday had taken their toll. They had barely slept after and could use a little rest.

''Do you think it's going to be a hectic year?'' Harry asked after they just laid a half an hour on their bed, content and stroking each other to just calm themselves that they were all okay.

Draco snorted and looked at his dark-haired boyfriend. ''You know it will. Something is going to happen; how all the Death Eaters are acting is a sign. They are winding each other up.'' Hermione blew some of her curls out of her face. She didn't like to think about what could happen this year.

''Promise me something, both of you.'' She said with her eyes on her boyfriends. Harry put a hand on her cheek and stroked it with his thumb. ''Anything, Mione.''

''Promise me, you two aren't going to look for trouble, promise me that you are not going anywhere without me, I know you probably want to spare me or something stupid, but if you two idiots think for one second I can't handle myself you're wrong. I am not just a girl, we are a Triad, and we can do anything as long as we are together.'' She looked with pleading eyes at her boys.

''We promise Hermione, we will not go looking for trouble without you,'' Draco said while smirking, earning a soft slap on his arm from Hermione. ''We know we need you, Mione, we promise that we will not do anything stupid without you,'' Harry said and kissed her softly on her lips.

Relief flooded her, and she climbed off the bed to go to her bag. After rummaging in it for a minute, she got out a couple of leather bracelets. Harry and Draco looked confused at her when she got back on the bed with the bracelets.

''These are portkeys, personal portkeys-'' She nibbled her lip because she knew it was illegal what she had done, but she wasn't going to lose Harry or Draco. Ever. ''-I would like for you to wear these. When one is activated, the other two are also activated and transported to the third. So if one of us is in trouble, you only need to activate the bracelet you are wearing, and you will not be alone.'' She explained.

Draco and Harry were dumbfounded but put the bracelets on. ''Hermione, this is like, expert-level charms. How the fuck did you do that?'' Draco said in awe. This girl would always amaze him. Harry still had a confused look on his face, he knew Hermione was crazy smart, but this indeed was extremely difficult magic.

Hermione blushed. ''The tome you gave to me in the beginning in the third year, it had this charm for personal portkeys for mothers and children to defend their children when necessary. Not that you're children who need help or saving-'' She added hastily at the hurt look that crossed her boyfriends. ''-It's also for me, like last year what happened on the train, you would have been in the compartment in an instant.''

That calmed Draco and Harry down. They would do anything for Hermione and each other. ''So if anything happens, you should activate the bracelet, the other two will appear instantly, but I want your promise that you will activate it as soon as you are in danger, no heroic shit, or self-sacrificing shit. I will not tolerate that. Do you two understand?'' She finished and leveled her glare at the boys.

They just grinned and pulled Hermione in a tight hug. ''We promise, Hermione, we will activate them, but you need to promise the same thing, okay?'' Harry said while hugging Hermione and Draco close. Hermione nodded and promised it too.

* * *

''Siriusss! You can let me go now!'' Harry grumbled after being pulled into another hug by his godfather for the third or fourth time. Hermione giggled and hugged Remus after he had let go of Theo. Theo's eyes were a little wet. He had gotten close with the werewolf in the couple of weeks he had stayed.

When Sirius finally let Harry go, he pulled Draco into a hug again. Draco hugged him tight back for the third time that day. Pansy interrupted the hug and kissed Sirius and Remus on the cheek before pulling the other teens away. She knew Sirius and Remus would try again to hug the daylights out of them.

''I expect letters!'' Sirius yelled after them. ''Dad! We will see you literally every week for tutoring.'' Draco yelled back with a smirk. Sirius actually blushed a little and grumbled. He was getting very attached to his pups. Draco and Harry felt like his own sons, Hermione, like a daughter, and Pansy and Theo like a niece and nephew. _Wait, did Draco just called me dad?_

He looked back at the teens and saw Draco smirking at him. He couldn't contain his glee and grinned like a maniac. Remus put a hand on his shoulder and smiled fondly towards the teens and waived before they boarded the Hogwarts Express.

The five teens got settled in a compartment together and were soon joined by Blaise and Ginny. The twins also stopped by. Apparently, their father and Bill had slipped that something would happen this year at Hogwarts. So they were talking excitedly, and they all were trying to guess what would happen.

Nothing really excited happened on the train. Hermione was reading while laying with Harry's head in her lap, stroking his hair absentmindedly. Ginny, Blaise, Pansy, Theo, and Draco were playing exploding snap and even tried to explain to Blaise and Ginny a muggle card game they had learned from Sirius and Hermione. When Draco got bored, he pulled Harry's legs aside to sit there and also started reading.

When it was time to get dressed in Hogwarts robes, Hermione got nervous, but Pansy went with her, and they made sure Hermione was never alone without any of them. She was grateful for the effort her friends made for her.

After arriving at Hogwarts, they split up to sit at their house tables. Harry and Hermione didn't like to be separated from Draco, but they understood that they needed to go to their own house for the opening feast. Harry and Hermione sat with Ginny and the twins. Draco was with Theo, Pansy, and Blaise, so they had a nice little club around them all.

The first years got into the Great Hall with Hagrid, and their excited faces were cute to see. When all the firsties were sorted, the Headmistress began speaking. ''Students! Welcome back at Hogwarts!'' She said with pride in her voice. ''Today the beginning of yet another year, and an exciting one at that. This year we are the hosts of the Triwizard Tournament!''

Everywhere in the Great Hall were exciting whispers, and the Twins whooped and high fived each other. ''Because it's a very dangerous tournament, only witches and wizards above seventeen can participate.'' That earned a lot of groans and outraged shouts from the younger people.

''The other schools that will participate will arrive the day before the champions are chosen! This will happen on Halloween! I expect every one of you on your best behavior!'' She leveled her stare at the Weasley twins, of course, who could only grin back and wink at her.

''Now, I don't want to keep you from your diner!'' She raised her hands, and food appeared all over the table. Harry enjoyed the food but was really waiting for the desert; treacle tart was his favorite. Harry looked at the rest of the table and saw his housemates. Even if he didn't sleep at the dorm the last year, he still was friends with them. He already knew from McGonagall that because of their bond, they would share the same dorm as the year before. To much relief for all three of them.

When the dessert was gone, McGonagall stood to make another announcement. ''Quiet, quiet, please! We also have a new Defense again, the Dark Arts teacher. Let me introduce you to Professor Alastor Moody.'' Harry looked at the table and saw a teacher who didn't was at the table before. He looked dangerous, and Harry got a bad vibe from him. The man had a strange eye that darted through the room until it halted on him.

Harry didn't like it. He glanced at the Slytherin table and saw the scowl on Draco's face. He had apparently thought the same thing and had also gotten the weird vibe. Draco looked at Harry and nodded. They would discuss this when they were in their dorm. Harry took Hermione's hand in his. He whispered in her ear if she was feeling it too, and she nodded. She was not taking her eyes of the man in question.

Everybody was getting up, and Harry concluded that the announcement was over without hearing the rest of it. But he knew Hermione would have heard everything, even when she would be distracted. They got up and instantly walked towards Draco, who met them halfway. Harry still had hold of Hermione's hand, and Draco threw his arm around Harry's shoulders. Grinning like a mad man, he just leaned a little in Draco's side. It felt good to be with his loves.

''Harry, what do you think of the new teacher?'' Hermione asked when they were seated in their own common room. ''I don't know yet, I just know that I don't like the feeling I'm getting.'' He explained. Hermione nodded and glanced at Draco.

''I'm afraid that he is spying for Dumbledore,'' Draco said. Harry looked confused and waited for Draco to explain further. ''He was chubby with Dumbledore in the first war, he was also in the Order according to Lucius.'' Draco pulled a face at the name of his sperm donor.

Harry hummed, he did expect that a little, but he couldn't pinpoint the exact feeling. It was not just Dumbledore's vibes, it felt a little like Quirrel in their first year, but he only found out that he had something to do with Voldemort when he faced him. He explained this to Draco and Hermione, and they agreed they would wait with conclusions when they had some lessons with the man.

They got ready for bed, they still had a room for Hermione and one for Draco and Harry, but since their vacation in Greece, they slept together in one bed. They didn't want to risk being apart. And they just wanted to be together, Harry and Draco didn't have nightmares, and Hermione would actually sleep instead of reading.

They just slept in Harry's bed and would extend it, so it was a little more comfortable for three people. Hermione was the first to nod of curling into Draco's side a little more. Draco smiled fondly towards her and put a kiss on her head. Harry put a hand on Draco's cheek so he would turn his head. They just stayed like that a little while longer, gazing in each other's eyes.

''I never thought I would have this,'' He whispered. Draco smiled at Harry before giving him a soft kiss, just a brief touch of their lips, but still containing enough love that Harry shivered and closed his eyes. ''Neither did I, Hermione and you make me complete, we will grow old together, have a lot of kids, and just be really happy.'' He said. Harry smiled and leaned against him, dozing off to sleep thinking of Draco's words.

* * *

Bloody bugger, why did we have to learn the Unforgivable curses in the first DADA lesson of the year?! That was all Hermione could think when she saw Professor Moody with the spiders and the face that Neville took out of fear of the Crucio curse. She looked back at Draco and Theo and saw them also ashen-faced. Harry was not doing all too well either next to her. He knew that the killing curse would also be part of that.

She was seething in her chair, how dare a teacher do this in the fourth year? These lessons are for sixth years. Of course, she couldn't resist raising her hand to answer the question. When she saw him enlarge the spider, she knew this would be bad. She grabbed Harry's hand to offer her silent support. She saw him smile out of the corner of her eye.

She already had a wary feeling around Pr. Moody but this didn't help it one bit. When he had shown all three of the curses, she was livid. She was thinking of a way to get him back for scaring the entire DADA fourth year. Then she heard his voice explaining that he would practice the Imperious on them. Nope. Not going to happen.

''Sir, these curses are unforgivable, like the name explains itself. You cannot practice them on students!'' She seethed against the teacher with the weird eye. He just raised his eyebrow and grunted. ''Miss Granger if I'm correct?'' She just nodded, still angry enough that her hair was crisping a little.

''I have permission from the Ministry for this less-'' He was interrupted when Hermione stood and glared at him. ''Do you also have permission from our parents? You know our legal guardians? By the look of your face, I think not.'' She said with a little smirk at the end. She could see that Pr. Moody was trying to stay calm.

''Miss Granger, every student needs to feel the curse, then they will know how to identify it and throw it off, in that way nobody can take advantage of you. If I heard it correctly, you should know how it is to be taken advantage of.'' Pr. Moody said.

Hermione gulped. That was a low blow, and it hurt a lot to be reminded of the incident. She could feel the anger rolling off Harry and Draco. They both were standing too, and Harry threw his arm around her shoulders. All the students looked disgusted that Pr. Moody brought this up. Hermione knew she couldn't deny that it was good practice to defend yourself against this particular curse, but she knew after reading a lot about it, that it was complicated to throw it off completely.

''Fine. But if anyone is uncomfortable, I will hold you responsible, Sir.'' The Sir was added with a loth of loathing and sarcasm. Draco had also reached her and had his hand on her back between her shoulder blades. She smiled at her boys, the smile not reaching her eyes, but they knew she appreciated the gestures.

After the lesson, she wanted nothing more but go back to their dorm and just be, but Harry was limping because of the Imperious curse. That asshat of a Professor had Harry jumping on the desk, but Harry could throw the curse off a little at first, so he bumped his shins. When the Professor saw that he could throw it, he just let Harry it do-over, again, and again!

She was feeling angry again on Harry's behalf and helped him towards their dorm together with Draco. When they went inside, she got her Healing spellbook and went to work on the bruises.

''I swear that if that- that tard of a man is going to hurt you again, I will end him.'' She seethed. Harry chuckled and pulled her against him for a hug. ''I'm okay, Mione, just a few bruises, you know I will probably get worse from Quidditch.'' He said to her and patted her head lovingly, just scratching her scalp a little, which he knew she loved, and her anger melted away.

She huffed. It was so not fair that they knew exactly what to do to make her like this. Draco sat next to them and pulled her feet in his lap and started rubbing them. Yes, she was a goner. ''You guys are the worst. I wanted to be angry a little longer.'' She said with a pout.

Harry and Draco stopped. ''Do you want us to stop Kitten?'' They both smirked when Draco said it. She made an incredulous noise and no! She didn't want them to stop. They chuckled and continued with what they were doing. After a few minutes, Pansy and Ginny came barging in.

''Hermione, you really are putty in their hands if they want to,'' Ginny said with a smirk. Hermione just hummed, too far gone already to be bothered. Until Pansy pulled her out of Draco and Harry's hands, and she was awake with a start.

''Panss!'' She shouted after being pulled to her feet without warning. She pouted because of the loss of contact, and Pansy and Ginny giggled. Harry and Draco looked put out to that they didn't have Hermione on their laps. ''Mione, come on, we still have other lessons Today, even after that horrible one, but first food! I was thinking Gryffindor Today, so come on!'' Pansy told them with a big smile.

Hermione grumbled but got her bag and books for their next lesson before going to the Great Hall for lunch. Harry and Draco trailed a little behind the girls. When Hermione glanced back, she saw that they were holding hands. She smiled and sent the sight of them to them through their bond.

They looked at her and smiled back, the bond was still evolving, but they learned to control it better and could send messages, memories, and sights without touching now.

Tonight they would have another tutoring from Remus and Sirius, they officially didn't need it now they had a sort of competent teacher for DADA, but they liked to see Sirius and Remus from time to time. They would now come for tutoring once in the two weeks. This because Draco and Hermione had Occlumency mastered, and because of their bond, Harry's mind was also guarded.

Pansy, Ginny, Theo, Blaise, and the twins also joined them with DADA tutoring from Remus and Sirius. Everyone could now conjure a Patronus and send messages through them. Pansy pulled her out of her thoughts.

''Mione, who do you think will join the Triwizard tournament?'' Pansy asked her. She hummed a little while thinking about it. ''The twins will try something, I just know it, and I heard that Cedric is going to try, he is already seventeen, I believe Johnson is also going to try.'' She mused. Pansy and Ginny nodded, ''I heard that Warrington would try for Slytherin,'' Pansy added.

Harry and Draco joined them, ''No, we cannot have a Slytherin champion. Hopefully, it will be Johnson or Cedric!'' Harry exclaimed. Earning a slap on the back of his head of Draco. ''OI! Why no Slytherin champion?'' He scowled at Harry. Harry shrugged. '' Because he's a prick, I don't need any more reason,'' Harry said, and he saw Draco rolling his eyes.

''So you're not going to try to participate, Harry?'' Pansy asked. Harry scoffed, ''No, I wanted a quiet year just school and relax with Mione and Draco. Play Quidditch, however, that's out of the question now,'' He grumbled, Hermione and Draco laughed. Harry pouted and scowled at them. He looked adorable like that.

The first month flew by at school, and soon, it was the day of the other two schools' arrivals for the Triwizard tournament. Hermione, Draco, and Harry were at the library when Pansy and Ginny got to them and dragged them outside. At first, nothing happened before someone saw something coming from the sky.

Hermione couldn't resist and said, ''It's a bird, o no a plane, it'ssssss-'' Harry and Draco were laughing and holding their sides before seeing the carriage landing with a dozen huge horses in front of it. Hagrid hurried to help with the horses before a huge woman stepped out. They could see the awe on Hagrid's face, and Hermione giggled together with Pansy and Ginny.

All the students poured out of the carriage. Hermione saw they didn't dress correctly for the weather and saw them shivering. Harry shifted a little to whisper to Draco and Hermione. ''They look cold, shall we put a heating charm on them?'' Hermione looked fondly at Harry and kissed him on the cheek, how considerate of him! They nodded, and they pulled out their wands. When the students were on the steps, they put a heating charm on all of them.

A blonde witch looked around her and saw the three of them standing with their wands drawn. She smiled and bounced to them. With a very heavy French accent, the witch began to speak. ''Thank you so much. It iz very cold out here. We should have had packed more clothing. My name iz Fleur Delacour, very nice to meet you.'' She bowed a little, and Hermione did the same.

''My name is Hermione Granger. These are Draco Black and Harry Potter, my boyfriends.'' Hermione said with a beaming smile. Fleur looked taken aback at the admission of two boyfriends but recovered quickly. Draco and Harry shuffled a little, and Draco took Fleur's hand to place a kiss above her knuckles. Harry did the same. ''Welcome at Hogwarts, Miss Delacour,'' Harry said. Fleur looked fascinated at the two boys and back at Hermione. Who could only smirk a little and feeling giddy.

''I will very much like to speak to you more, Miss Granger,'' Fleur said with her own smirk. ''Of course, that can be arranged,'' She smiled, and Fleur said her goodbye before going back to the other Beauxbatons students. Hermione looked back at Draco and Harry, who had a confused look on their faces.

''You probably felt her Veela heritage, she didn't try on purpose to charm you two, but because of our bond, it wouldn't work, just like with the veela's at the world cup didn't charm you,'' Hermione explained. ''She was impressed, that's why she would like to talk to me, so I can explain why you didn't fell in love at her sight. Just look around. A lot of boys are still drooling.'' She finished with a little disgust.

They looked and saw a couple of boys, indeed literally drooling. Before they could say anything more, the lake started bubbling. A large ship emerged from the lake. When it was docked, a swarm of students came out and walked towards the castle. Hermione could hear the whispers around her. _Is that Krum? O my Salazar, it is! He is the best seeker ever! He looks so handsome!_

Hermione rolled her eyes and looked towards the group. She saw the boy that was Krum. He was walking a little apart from the group, being coddled by their Headmaster. He looked at her, and he smiled. She just smiled back before feeling Harry and Draco close in on her. When she glanced at them, she could see the scowls on their faces and laughed.

''You don't really think I would anyone else than you two, do you?'' She whispered at them, she took their hands, and they walked inside. Draco needed to sit at the Slytherin table, and Harry and Hermione walked towards the Gryffindor table.

The students of both schools came inside with a lot of show. Hermione clapped along with everyone else. The Headmistress welcomed the other schools; Beauxbatons sat with Ravenclaw, and the Drumstrang sat with Slytherin. Hermione could see Draco talking to Krum; when he was glancing back at her, Draco snapped his fingers in front of his face with a scowl in place. She rolled her eyes because of the possessive gesture but was still flattered.

* * *

The next day was Halloween. Harry was dreading the entire day. He always felt off because of this day. Even though he was a baby when his parents died didn't help with it, Halloween was a sore subject for him. Hermione and Draco tried to lift his spirits in the morning, which helped a lot. I mean, come on, a make-out session in the early morning is always a great start of the day!

When they got down to the Great Hall for breakfast, they saw the goblet of fire. They grabbed something to eat and sat on the stands to look if someone they know would drop their name in it. They didn't have to wait long. Cedric made his way across the age line and dropped his name in it. They clapped with the rest of the watching students when he got out with a wide smile on his face. They saw him looking back at them, and Harry flushed bright red when he winked at him.

Draco elbowed him in the side and put an arm around his shoulders. Harry chuckled. He loved it when Draco became possessive of him. He kissed Draco and took a bite of the apple Draco was holding. ''Get your own apple Potter, you know I love these things.'' Harry just nodded and took another bite before smirking at his blonde boyfriend. He heard Hermione giggle before seeing the twins walk in.

They were trying to get over the age line with some sort of potion. Hermione scoffed and told them it wouldn't work. When they didn't listen, they just jumped in and got almost immediately thrown back over the age line. Harry, Draco, and Hermione laughed hard when they saw the white beards they were sporting.

They got bored watching the goblet after an hour and went outside, Draco and Harry to fly and Hermione to read. They got Dobby to get them something to eat for lunch, and Ginny, Theo, and Blaise joined Harry and Draco in the sky while Pansy stayed to talk with Hermione.

When they got inside for dinner, every student was buzzing with energy for the Triwizard Champions' outcome. They got seated together at the Griffindor table. Chatting and smiling until dinner was over and the selection would begin.

Headmistress McGonagall was standing with the goblet and explained again that a contract bound you if your name was chosen and needed to participate. You could hear a pin drop when the flames in the goblet turned red. A little piece of parchment flew out and landed in the outstretched hand of McGonagall.

''The champion of Durmstrang is Victor Krum!'' A lot of clapping and shouting started, and Harry participated. Even if the guy tried to flirt with Hermione, he would still support everyone in the tournament. The goblet turned red again. ''The champion of Beauxbaton is Fleur Delacour!'' Harry clapped again, a little louder than before because Fleur seemed like a nice girl.

Again the goblet turned red. ''And the champion for Hogwarts is Cedric Diggory!'' The hall exploded with noise, and everyone who could reach Cedric clapped him on the back when he got to the back of the hall to wait in the adjoined chamber. McGonagall congratulated the champions and started to dismiss the rest of the hall when the goblet turned red again.

A dread came over Harry and expanded in his stomach. _This cannot be good._ Was the only thing Harry thought when McGonagall reached for the fourth parchment.

''Harry Potter, this cannot - Harry?'' McGonagall looked at him, and he was frozen to his seat. He could hear the murmurs of the students around him, that he was too young, and why would there be a fourth?

He felt a small hand in his and looked at Hermione. She looked like she might cry, ''Harry, you need to go to the other chamber.'' She choked out. ''Mione, I didn't -'' He was interrupted by Draco. ''We know love, we know. We will figure it out. I'm going to contact Sirius and Remus. You just need to go back to the chamber now, okay?'' Draco whispered while squeezing his shoulder. Harry got up and walked to the back.

Well, of course, it would be a fucked up year again.


	20. Chapter 20

**You're old regular disclaimer, I don't own Harry Potter!**

* * *

Harry got back to his dorm, defeated and angry, he needed to participate in the tournament. It didn't matter that he did not put his name in the goblet. It didn't matter that he didn't even want to participate. It didn't matter that he was too young. He needed to do the tasks. Otherwise, lose his magic.

He got inside and was attacked by the arms of a small witch that fitted his body perfectly. He hugged Hermione close while she was rattling about how unfair it was and that Sirius was angry at Hogwarts that they let this happen. He pulled a little back from Hermione and kissed her forehead before turning towards Draco. He needed them both to keep his emotions in check. Draco saw this and headed towards Harry to kiss him. They hugged in a group and just stood there for a while.

''Sirius will be here tomorrow with Remus. They would have come now, but I told them they couldn't do anything about it right now, so it wouldn't make any difference.'' He explained when he pulled back from Harry and Hermione. ''Can you tell us what they told you when you went in?'' He asked softly. Harry appreciated immensely that Draco had already contacted Sirius.

He explained how none of the adults really knew how this had happened, and they didn't believe him that he didn't put his own name in. Hermione made incredulous noises and mumbled about hexes. Harry explained that only McGonagall seemed to believe him. That was a weight off his shoulders.

''Harry. Draco and I have been talking. The only reason anyone would put your name in is to harm you. The tasks are dangerous, Harry. Someone did this on purpose to hurt you. We can assume it has something to do with Death Eaters and Voldemort.'' Harry nodded along with Hermione's explanation. He figured that out also.

''Well, it's not the first time he's trying to kill me. So this is nothing new.'' He said with a scoff. Draco put his arm around Harry's shoulder, and Harry leaned against the blonde wizard and sighed. ''It would be great to not be afraid of your life for a change.'' Draco huffed out a laugh. Hermione didn't find it funny, but there was a small smile on her mouth.

''Let's go to sleep, tomorrow we can talk with Sirius and Remus, and hopefully, they can help us. If they can't help us get you out of it, they can help you train.'' Hermione stated and walked inside the bathroom.

Draco and Harry started to undress and got into bed before Hermione was back. Draco kept his arms around Harry, and Harry was again grateful for Draco and clung to him. Hermione got back and got in on the other side of Harry and put her arms around him. They drifted off within minutes.

* * *

The next day Remus and Sirius strolled in the Great Hall at breakfast. Harry felt glad that they were there, even under these circumstances. ''Prongslet, please tell me everything that happened. Draco explained it, but I want to hear it from you.'' Sirius said with a worried face when they sat down at the Gryffindor table. Everybody was looking at them and trying to look like they weren't listening and failing horribly.

Harry explained again what happened and again told everyone within hearing distance that he didn't put his name in the goblet. He could hear a couple of scoffs from people who didn't believe him, but he didn't care as long as his friends and family believed him. Sirius and Remus nodded with the story and assured him that they believed him. Sirius pulled him in a big hug.

Theo, Blaise, Pansy, Ginny, and the twins also joined the group. Luckily they all believed Harry, and that felt really good. ''Harrykins, of course, we believe you, the only method you would have pulled it off would have been if Hermione helped you. And we all know how she is with the rule-breaking.'' The twins told him in stereo.

Hermione just smirked, she broke many rules, but nobody needed to know that, only Harry and Draco. Sirius and Remus couldn't do anything, according to McGonagall. They spent three hours talking and screaming at her and the people who organized the event.

When Sirius and Remus got back at the Triad's dorm, the jury had agreed with McGonagall that they could tutor Harry as much as they wanted. They would get access to the castle when they wanted or needed it. That thought did reassure Harry a little bit. But he still was skeptical and afraid of what would happen with the tasks.

A couple of weeks flew by, a lot of people didn't believe Harry that he didn't put his name in himself, but luckily a lot of the people did believe him. They supported him and Cedric as Hogwarts Champion.

He was always with Hermione or Draco, which was fine, especially when a journalist kept badgering him for a story. ''Miss Skeeter, please just leave me alone.'' He said for the millionth time today. ''But Harry! The people want to get to know the boy behind the scar, the boy who lived, the boy - '' She was interrupted rudely by Draco. ''The boy who is walking away because he doesn't want to talk to you.''

Draco pulled Harry with him and kept holding his hand. ''The nerve of that woman, and really why would you wear so much makeup?'' Draco scoffed when they were out of hearing distance. ''McGonagall is trying to get her off of Hogwarts grounds, but Ludo Bagman is adamant that there needs to be publicity,'' Harry said while rolling his eyes.

The woman was dreadful. She already published four completely inaccurate stories. Before they could get inside, they were hold up by Hagrid. ''Harry! How nice to see you! And you to Draco, I have more rock cakes for you if you wish!'' He beamed at the two boys.

Draco was looking a little green, the last time they went for tea at Hagrids, he had pretended to love the rock cakes, but he didn't want any more rock cakes. Never in his life.

''Uh, no, thank you, Hagrid, but how are you?'' Draco quickly said while Harry was hiding his snickering behind a cough. ''Great, great! I got a date!'' Hagrid was beaming at him.

Harry and Draco looked impressed. ''Who is it, Hagrid?'' Harry asked. ''It's Olympe, aah, she is beautiful, isn't she!'' Hagrid sighed and stared away in the distance. Harry and Draco chuckled a little.

''That's great, Hagrid! I hope you two will have a nice date.'' Harry said politely. ''Thank you, I just wanted to ask you something.'' Hagrid leaned in closer, and Draco and Harry were curious.

''Could you meet me tonight at my cabin? Could you be there by nine? In your special cloak? If you know what I mean.'' He whispered on a rather loud level. Harry looked confused but nodded. ''And come alone, Harry. I will not see you tonight.'' Hagrid said while winking. He walked away, leaving two very confused boys behind.

''Was it me, or was that very weird even for Hagrid?'' Draco said to Harry. Harry agreed, and they walked to the library to collect Hermione. When they went in, they saw Hermione rolling her eyes and grumbling.

''What's wrong, Hermione? It looks like you're irritated.'' Harry asked when they reached her. She huffed and nodded. Then threw a glare to the back of the library, when they followed her eyesight, they saw Victor Krum sitting in a chair with a book. That wasn't why Hermione was irritated. No, it was definitely the groupies who were whispering rather loud and giggling while looking at Victor.

Harry saw that when Hermione looked back at her book and started to pack her bag that Victor looked up and was staring at Hermione. He elbowed Draco and nodded towards Victor. Draco also looked and saw that Victor sighed while looking at Hermione. _Yeah, not going to happen, pal._

He strode towards Hermione's side and got her bag for her and took her hand. Harry followed him and took her other hand and kissed her on her cheek. Hermione looked a little skeptical that they took her bag but paid it no mind when they walked out of the library.

Harry was just finished with the story of how weird Hagrid was acting when they reached their dorm. They got inside, and Harry and Draco got their familiars. Hermione was doing a little bit of homework before Sirius and Remus would arrive. They would train Harry tonight again for the tournament. McGonagall even put a fireplace in their dorm with a connection between Potter Manor and Hogwarts.

An hour before dinner, the fireplace roared, and Sirius and Remus came in holding hands. ''Ready pups? We want to practice your dueling skills today, but while you're apart. We already know that you three together are almost invincible, but Harry needs to train alone for the tournament.''

The three teens nodded and got ready. Harry would go first against Remus. Draco went against Sirius, and Hermione would watch the first round.

Harry attacked first, but Remus put a shield in front of him to stop the curse. Harry did the curse without uttering a word. They all could cast simple curses silent.

Remus transfigured a book that was lying behind Harry in a flock of birds that flew towards Harry. He got out of the way before sending a silent aquamenti towards Remus, drenching him completely. He even formed a large bubble of water to hold Remus in. Remus broke out of it but was panting.

He sends a stunner towards Harry, who just got out of the way in time. Harry was preparing a jinx, but Remus was first and fired a tickle jinx. Harry fell to the floor, gasping between laughs before sending a trip jinx to Remus, who also fell on the floor because of that.

Harry finally threw the tickle jinx of and got up again. He saw that Remus was also getting up and attacked. He got Remus with a stunner, and Remus fell again. ''Nice work Harry, you are getting better and better. Also good for you that you didn't let your guard down when you were under the jinx.'' Remus told him while getting help from Hermione to get up again.

''It's frustrating that we don't know what I'm up against next week,'' Harry said while pouting a little and looking towards Draco and Sirius, the last one had a scratch on his arm. Draco was apologizing over and over again.

''It's fine, Draco, you got me good, only my ego is hurt,'' Sirius smiled fondly at Draco. Draco spelled the wound away and again said sorry before being pulled into a hug by Sirius. Draco looked a lot better when they parted.

''Maybe we should take a break for a moment and get something to eat before we continue. Harry, how late did you need to go to Hagrid's?'' Hermione said while checking Harry for injuries, he didn't have. ''I'm fine, Mione, and I need to be there around nine.'' He said while kissing Hermione on the lips.

She smiled and called for Dobby to ask for food. It really was convenient that they could use Dobby inside the castle. Of course, he got payment and everything.

They settled for dinner, and Harry explained to Remus and Sirius that Hagrid was acting weird and that he asked that Harry would come in his father's cloak. Sirius looked thoughtful.

''Maybe he knows something about the first task. It's possible that that's why you need to be cloaked. He could get into serious trouble if the judges know he's helping you. You already get more help because you're younger than the other competitors.'' He said.

''It's possible, yes. Be careful tonight, Harry. And keep your ears and eyes open.'' Remus added. They finished eating, and Remus send a Patronus message to Theo to meet them at the dorm. A couple of minutes later, Theo, Blaise, Ginny, Luna, and Pansy walked in. Theo immediately went to Remus to hug him and started talking about everything that happened that week.

Sirius started explaining a couple of transfiguration spells they could use to distract an opponent, and Harry listened intently. They all started practicing, and Hermione dueled with Remus. Harry, Draco, and Hermione could defeat everyone in the room if they worked together. Tonight was the first time that they could beat Remus and Sirius by themselves.

At a quarter before nine, Harry got ready to go to Hagrid's. The training was already finished for half an hour, but Remus and Sirius stayed to talk to the teens they saw as their own.

Harry got out together with Theo, Blaise, Ginny, Luna, and Pansy when they went back to their dorm. Remus and Sirius would stay until Harry was back to check if everything went okay.

Harry walked to Hagrid's and was there just before nine, he knocked, and Hagrid opened immediately. Hagrid was dressed up, or Harry thought he was dressed up. ''Harry?'' Hagrid whispered. ''Yes, it's me, Hagrid,'' Harry responded in a whisper.

Hagrid ushered him with him to walk towards the carriage of Beauxbatons. ''Hagrid, do you have your date tonight? Why am I here?!'' Harry asked in a panicked whisper. ''Shhht, Harry! Don't let anyone see you. I really shouldn't let you see this.'' Hagrid whispered back before knocking on the carriage.

The door opened, and Madame Maxime strolled outside. Hagrid gave her a bouquet of seeming dead flowers, and Harry almost facepalmed, but Madame Maxime looked like she liked the gesture.

They walked towards the Forrest, and Harry kept close, but just far enough that he didn't hear everything they said. ''Hagrid, where are you taking me?'' He heard Madame Maxime say with a heavy accent.

''I'm going to show you something, it's truly amazing. You will see!'' That was the only explanation Harry got before they heard roaring. There was no other word for it, and the sound chilled Harry to the bone.

They got into a clearing, and Harry saw different people running around and a couple of cages with dragons. _Why is my life so extremely screwed?_

At that moment, a column of fire was being fired from one of the cages. ''Hagrid! Nice to see you here, and you have company?'' The statement came out as a question from the redhead that walked up to them. _Must be a Weasley._ Harry thought to himself with a smirk worthy of Draco.

''Charlie! Yes, I just let Olympe here see what's going to happen in the tournament!'' Hagrid beamed at the man. Harry now knew it had to be Charlie Weasley; he worked with dragons if he remembered correctly.

Harry saw the man scowl at Hagrid. ''You know the champions shouldn't know about the tasks,'' Charlie said. Harry gulped and retreated. He knew enough now. He walked back towards the castle, but he saw a bush move next to him. When he softly got nearer, he saw the headmaster of Durmstrang.

 _So Beauxbatons, Durmstrang, and I will know what we are facing._ Harry scowled. He needed to inform Cedric. It would only be fair if everyone knew about this. He hurried back to the castle and his dorm. When he was at the portrait that hid his dorm, he knocked. Knowing Hermione or Draco would open it.

Within a minute, the door opened and revealed Draco. He brushed his hand over Draco's face for a moment before stepping in. Draco smiled when he felt Harry's hand.

''Harry?'' Sirius asked from his place on the couch. Harry pulled his cloak off and got seated in one of the armchairs. He knew he looked a little upset and wasn't surprised when Hermione and Draco joined him in the armchair, they were squeezed together, but he didn't mind.

''Dragons. Freaking dragons. How am I going to survive that?'' He said with a snarl. He didn't want to do this, but he didn't have a choice. He felt Hermione and Draco's arms tight around him, and he felt reassured. They would find a way, of course.

''Seriously, how do they come up with this kind of tasks? It's for school children.'' Remus said with a little disgust in his voice. Sirius nodded along, not trusting his voice to say anything at the moment.

''We need a plan of action for you, Harry. How does it sound to speak parseltongue to the dragon?'' Remus proposed. Draco shook his head. ''That wouldn't work. They are related to snakes, but parseltongue wouldn't work on dragons.'' Everybody looked towards Draco at this. They had expected this kind of answer from Hermione, not Draco. Draco blushed a little, ''I really like dragons, and I'm named after them.'' He grumbled while putting a tighter hold on Harry.

Harry smiled but said nothing. He knew that Draco was almost just as smart as Hermione but didn't show it all the time. He questioned himself a couple of times because he wasn't as smart as they were, but Hermione and Draco had reassured him when he voiced those thoughts. He wasn't book smart, but he was better in spells and stronger in a lot of them.

''Maybe we need to play on Harry's strengths?'' Hermione mused. Everbody looked up at her, ''What are you thinking about, Mione?'' Harry smirked. He knew Hermione would come with a great idea, of course.

''Well, you need to go up against a dragon, but when I read about previous tournaments, the first task always has an element necessary for the second task. With that in thought, you probably need to collect something of the sort. So why are you not going to fly to collect the item?'' She suggested. Harry hugged her close and kissed her with vigor. When they separated, they both were quite breathless.

''You're bloody brilliant, Hermione! But I'm only allowed to have my wand with me, not my broom.'' He saw Hermione roll her eyes. ''You already mastered the summoning spell, so Draco and I will have your firebolt with us, and you can summon it when you're in the arena.'' She explained.

Sirius got up from the couch he was sitting in to grab Hermione and hug and twirl her around. ''You're truly are the brightest witch of your generation!'' He exclaimed when he put Hermione down. She was flustered and had a shy smile on her face.

Remus and Sirius stayed for another hour just talking before going home. Harry felt a lot lighter now he know what was going to happen in the next week.

He was kissing Hermione when they were lying in bed. Draco was snuggled against Hermione's back and was drawing lazy circles on her thigh and kissing her neck.

When they parted, Draco swooped down and kissed Harry with everything he had. Harry groaned, and Draco swallowed the sounds. Hermione watched her boys with lust in her eyes. She stroked both their bare torsos. She saw that the boys parted from their kiss and turned her head to Draco and started kissing his neck, nibbling a little on his collarbone before kissing it again.

Draco pulled her face up and pushed his lips on hers; he swept his tongue over her bottom lip to open her mouth, which she did with vigor. Harry was kissing along Hermione's neck and between her shoulder blades. He kissed a sensitive spot just beneath her ear, and he could hear her moan. He grinned against her neck and kept kissing.

He already was hard and stroked his length leisurely before he felt another hand take over and groaned at the feeling. He looked and saw that Draco had taken over; the lust in Draco's eyes made him groan again.

Harry reached between Hermione and Draco and felt that Hermione had her hand on Draco's length. He reached further down and slipped his hand in Hermione's knickers. He heard her gasp before it turned into a moan when he reached her sensitive bud.

Harry felt he was close, and when he closed his eyes, he could feel through the bond that his loves also were on the edge of falling. ''Hermione, love, come for me,'' He whispered in her ear, loud enough that Draco could hear it too. The brown-haired witch moaned, and she was panting now.

''Harry, don't st- O god!'' She moaned and came undone under Harry's ministrations. The boys falling over the edge right behind her. When Harry could think a little more clearly, he waved his hand, and the mess vanished. They got settled back into bed and were almost asleep.

''We should be more careful and not so spontaneous, and much how I love these small encounters. I feel a push towards more. Like in the form of having sex more. Do you feel that to or am I just a horny bastard?'' Draco said softly, earning a snort of laughter from Harry and Hermione.

''I feel it too, so we indeed need to be careful. Otherwise, we are married. And I'm still too young for that!'' Hermione said, and she felt Harry nod along with her. ''Yes, we need to be careful, but if you two think that we aren't going to have other nights like this, you both are in denial,'' Harry said while smirking against Hermione's shoulder blades. She giggled, and Draco laughed softly.

''Let's go to sleep, loves, it's already been a tiring day,'' Draco said softly. They all fell asleep rather fast after.

* * *

''Cedric! Cedric! Wait!'' Harry yelled after the tall blonde wizard before reaching him when he finally detached himself from his friends.

''Harry, nice to see you here,'' Cedric said with a smirk. Harry felt himself blush. He was very in love with Draco and Hermione, but Cedric was hot, and that smirk could melt an iceberg. He cleared his throat. ''Dragons, the first task is dragons.'' He whispered to the other wizard.

He saw Cedric's eyes widen and swallow. ''How do you know that? And are you sure?'' Harry rolled his eyes. ''Yes, I'm sure, and it doesn't matter how I know, but I know that Fleur and Victor will know also. You don't deserve a disadvantage.'' Harry said he wanted to walk away before he felt a hand on his arm.

''Thank you, Harry, I will not forget this,'' Cedric whispered in Harry's ear. Harry nodded and swallowed and quickly started to walk away. He was almost inside before he heard a throat being cleared behind him. He looked back and saw Prof. Moody standing in a dark enclave.

''That was nice of you, Potter,'' He grunted. ''Uh, thank you?'' Harry said,/asked. ''Do you have an idea of what you're going to do with the task?'' Moody said with a grunt, an almost a hungry expression Harry couldn't place.

''As a matter of fact, I do,'' Harry responded rather smugly. He saw the shocked expression on Moody's face before he quickly looked elsewhere. Harry filed that away for another time. ''Oh, really? And what would that be? Maybe I can help-'' Harry held up his hand to stop the man.

''I'm not allowed any help. So no, thank you.'' He turned and walked away from Moody, thinking about why the man would try to help him and what other motives the man could have. He turned a corner and ran into Draco and Hermione.

''Hey Harry! We were just looking for you, are you okay? You look rather far away.'' Hermione said while looking worried. He looked around and saw that Moody was coming their way. He send them a message over the bond what had happened just now with Moody. Hermione and Draco looked thoughtful before Draco whispered. ''Let's stage a fight. Then we can check how he would react.''

Harry nodded. ''Well, Cedric asked me out.'' He said, rather loudly. Draco stiffened beside him. He knew that Draco knew that this was to stage a fight, but maybe he shouldn't have said that. Draco was really jealous.

''He did what now? What did you say? I hope you said that you're taken?'' Draco sneered, making Harry flinch. He hated that face of Draco. If he was pissed off, he would turn back into the scared boy he was before he got away from his parents.

''Boys..'' Hermione tried to defuse the tension that had build up between them. ''I said I would think about it,'' Harry said, ignoring Hermione completely. He glared at Draco. Draco should know this was a lie but blanched at the words none the less.

''Really now, Potter, and why should you need to think about it? What I gather is that you are taken.'' Draco sneered at the black-haired wizard. Deep down, he knew it was all a lie just to stage a fight, but he felt already that he was the odd one out of the three. He couldn't help his feelings that they could and would replace him, and his whole world would fall apart.

''Well, with the way you're acting right now, maybe I should say yes to Cedric because I don't like being treated like an object,'' Harry responded, feeling every word like a knife in his chest. He didn't mean anything of it; he didn't want Cedric, he wanted Draco and Hermione. He started to turn away and saw that they had gathered a crowd. He also saw Moody standing a little away. He was just ten steps away when he heard Moody.

''Black! You should know that you can't attack anyone in the back.'' Harry spun around and didn't saw Draco. He only saw Hermione wide-eyed in fright and a white ferret. _O fuck! He didn't!_

Harry ran back, but before he could reach the ferret, it was thrown in the air and bounced up and down. He saw Moody grinning like a mad man and felt fury chill his blood and bones. Nobody touched his soulmates.

He took Hermione's hand and pushed his magic out with all their might. Moody was taken by surprise and thrown back against a wall with a sickening crack. When the wave of magic hit Draco, he transformed back to himself. Harry and Hermione were with him in an instant.

''Love! Are you okay? Fucking Salazar, why did he do that? You know I didn't mean anything that I said, right? I freaking love you.'' Harry said quickly while cradling Draco's head. Draco opened his eyes and saw the sincerity in Harry's eyes.

''I know now, could you two take me to the hospital wing? I think I broke a few bones.'' Draco grunted out. He could feel that his shoulder was dislocated, and his ribs ached. Hermione and Harry both helped him up with a little difficulty. They didn't look back to the teacher on the ground that still was unconscious and didn't get any help from the students that witnessed everything.

They reached the hospital wing, and Madam Pomfrey mended Draco's bones. They were out of the infirmary in half an hour. Draco was still sore and a little bruised. They really didn't want to face anyone at dinner, so they got back to their dorm.

There was a knock on the door just when they finished eating. When Harry opened the door, Minerva McGonagall was revealed. Harry let her in, and they got seated while Dobby fetched tea. ''Mister Black, Potter and Miss Granger. I was informed about an incident today. Care to explain what happened?'' McGonagall asked with a raised eyebrow.

''That depends, what did you hear?'' Draco drawled. He really didn't want to answer any questions about today, but it was inevitable.

''I heard that Prof. Moody broke up a fight between you two, and was repaid by a blast of magic from you two.'' She said while pointing towards the accused. Hermione immediately shot up out of her place on the couch. ''That's not true! Harry and Draco had words, that's correct. But when Harry walked away and Draco reached in his robes, Prof Moody attacked Draco by turning him in a ferret! A ferret! How dare he! Draco broke three ribs and dislocated his shoulder!'' She seethed, her hair was starting to spark again. ''I will willingly give my memories of the event. Prof. Moody was indeed thrown back by a blast of magic from our bond. We cannot and will not let anything happen to any one of us.'' She said while crossing her arms over her chest. She was never rude towards Prof. McGonagall, but she couldn't let this happen.

''He did what? He transfigured you, Mister Black?'' McGonagall asked the blonde wizard. He only nodded. Harry pulled him in a one-armed hug and kissed his temple. They all saw that McGonagall was straining herself to stay calm. ''I will deal with this, I truly believe all of you, but Miss Granger would you be so kind as to give me the memories? Then I can do something about his behavior.'' Hermione just nodded and got a flask. She quickly put her memory of the event in the flask and gave it to McGonagall, who looked stunned that Hermione could pull out her memory like that without a second thought.

McGonagall said her goodbye and went away. ''Well, this didn't do anything for my stress level for tomorrow.'' Harry sighed when she was gone.

''Neither for mine. I'm going to be a wreck.'' Draco grunted while walking back towards the bedroom. ''Hold just one second, you two.'' Harry and Draco both froze. That tone of voice meant nothing good when it came out of Hermione. They were both screwed.

''Are you two going to say that nothing happened? That everything turned out to be okay? Because I think that we should talk about this. I mean, obviously, you thought that Harry meant what he said, Draco.'' She said with a softer voice. ''Why did you believe it? You do know that we both love you, right?'' Hermione looked pointedly at him, and he started to squirm.

''I know deep down that you love me, but you were such good friends before we got together. You already had a history together, a nice history I might add, together without me. And sometimes I just think that you could do better. Then me.'' Draco admitted, he looked at his feet, not daring a look towards his dumbfounded boy - and girlfriend.

Harry scoffed and walked to him; he put his hand on Draco's cheek and forced his head a little to look in each other's eyes. ''I don't want anyone else, there is no one better for me. Please believe me, Cedric didn't ask me out, and even if he did, I would say no because you two mean everything to me. I want you, Draco. You and Hermione.'' Harry said and emphasizing it by kissing Draco softly.

Draco hummed into the kiss and smiled into it. Hermione walked to them and kissed them both on the cheek. ''Let's go to bed, loves, tomorrow will be a hard day for all of us. I love you both.'' They got into a restless sleep for the next day—the day of the first task.

* * *

Harry was pacing in the tent. He would be next against the dragon, and of course, he had the angriest one. He hoped that everything would go by smoothly, but his heart was pounding from anxiety.

''And finally! Champion number four! Harry Potter!'' Harry froze for a second when he heard Ludo Bagman announce him. Before he sorted himself out and walked out of the tent, he stepped into the arena and looked around.

He could see the dragon; it was enormous and had black scales. ''Accio firebolt!'' He yelled. Within a minute, the broom was in his hand, and he got on. He flew around the dragon, checking every angle available before deciding on the safest path. He needed to get the dragon far enough away from the eggs.

He tried parseltongue, he knew that the dragon couldn't understand him, but it would probably distract it enough. It seemed to work. The dragon tilted his head towards Harry, and big yellow eyes stared after him while he was on his broom far away enough out of its reach.

He zigzagged a little and saw that the dragon was taking small steps away from the eggs. _Just a little further._ He thought.

The dragon did two more steps, and Harry took his chance. He ducked and zoomed as fast as he could towards the eggs. He took hold of the golden egg and heard the mother dragon roar. He didn't look back but zoomed away from the arena towards the jury tent. He got the highest score out of everyone because he did the task the quickest and without any damage.

Harry couldn't give a damn. He was already running towards his wizard and witch. Only one word in his mind. Safe.


	21. Chapter 21

**Hey! Thank you so much for reading this fic. I really like to write it and would love it if you left a review! Have fun!**

**Disclaimer! If you recognize anything, it's not mine. Harry Potter is from JK Rowling!**

* * *

With his egg tucked under his arm, he ran and ran towards the stands where he knew Draco and Hermione would be waiting. After just a few minutes, he could see them and flung himself at them. They clung together, and Harry finally let the stress take it's toll and shivered against his loves.

''Are you okay, Harry?'' He heard the dreamy voice of Luna Lovegood say behind him. He just shook his head and kept his hold on Draco and Hermione, they were shivering with him, and he could feel the tears soaking his clothing were Hermione had buried her face in his chest.

He never let anyone else than his family and friends see that he could be emotional. But today was an exception. He was bloody terrified against the dragon.

He felt Hermione squirm and let Draco and Hermione go and stepped back. He was pulled into big broad arms by Sirius and felt like a little boy when he clung to him.

''You did great, Harry. James and Lily would have been so proud.'' Sirius whispered in his ear for only him to hear. He felt like he could take on the dragon again by this admission. But he really didn't want to do that ever, ever, ever again.

When he was released, he was hounded by his friends. Everybody congratulated him when they made their way back to the castle. The twins were throwing a party in the Gryffindor common room. They went there for an hour before making their way back to their dorm.

As soon as the door closed, he felt his shoulders sag with relief. Being here in their own space with just the three of them was all he needed.

'''Love, how are you truly feeling?'' Hermione asked softly. Harry looked up, and their eyes locked. Big dark brown eyes looked into forest green. Before he could speak, his arms were full of a witch, and he put his face in her curls.

He could feel Draco behind him, putting his arms around them. They could have been standing for hours on end without the need to break up. Harry honestly couldn't tell you how long they just hugged and took comfort from each other's company.

When the tiredness became too much, they crawled into bed, just banishing their clothes, too tired to undress.

The next morning they woke up to banging on their dorm room door. Draco grumbled but untangled himself from his partner's limbs and put on a robe before opening the door. His hair was in complete disarray. Harry thought it was hilarious if he looked this way because he was always 'to put together.'

He opened the door to reveal their friends, the twins in the front were grinning like madmen when they saw the look of utter loathing from the blonde wizard.

''Finally, it took you forever,'' Fred said. ''Were you getting lucky, Drakey? Because you look delicious, looking like that.'' George said with a wicked grin. Draco, who was used to the flirting Fred and George did, didn't bat an eye and just grumbled a come in, to everybody.

With everybody, it was the usual group of Pansy, Blaise, Theo, Ginny, Luna, and the twins. They got comfortable on the couches and chairs when Draco got back into the bedroom.

He just fell on the bed, sprawled over Harry and Hermione, who woke up with a start.

''Bloody hell, Draco, was that necessary? I've beat a bloody dragon. I can sleep in today.'' Harry grumbled before pulling a cushion over his head.

''I really would like to go back to bed and spent the rest of the day with my favorite two people, who don't appreciate me by the way because they are now entirely cranky to me, but we have company,'' Draco said with a smirk when Hermione started to protest because of the wake-up call.

''Can we get a shower first? And I really would love to have some coffee.'' Hermione said with a little whine. Before they could say anything, Dobby popped in and gave Hermione her coffee just how she liked it.

''Dobby, I love you. Don't ever change.'' She said, very seriously. Dobby blushed and popped away. Draco just sniggered and got up a little, so Hermione's legs were free.

Then he flopped his body on Harry's, earning a grumble from beneath the pillow on the dark-haired wizards head. Draco pulled the pillow from Harry's head and put his lips against his ear.

''Love, you really need to get up,'' Another grumble from Harry. ''Harry, if you get out of bed, we can shower together. Hermione is already up, and if you don't get out of the bed within five minutes, you're going to miss a hell of a show.'' Draco said again in his ear.

Before Draco could get off, he was already thrown onto the mattress by Harry, who was physical a lot stronger than him. Harry straddled his lap and kissed him breathless before getting up and almost running to the shower.

''Bloody tease.'' He grumbled before trailing behind Harry and Hermione into the shower.

* * *

''SHUT THAT FUCKING THING BEFORE I'LL HEX YOU!'' Pansy shrieked.

They were all seated in the triad's common room, thinking it was a good idea to open the egg and check out the clue before the wailing started from the egg.

Everybody was clutching their ears, and Harry scrambled to shut the egg as soon as possible. ''Well, that was a bad idea.'' Theo drawled while putting his finger in his ear and drawing it back to check if his ear was bleeding.

''That was just nasty. What kind of clue could this be?'' Fred said. George continued. ''Harry, did you break the egg? Because we can try to steal the one from Cedric?'' Both were now waggling their eyebrows at the suggestion.

Hermione looked scandalized. ''Of course, Harry didn't break it! And what you're suggesting is illegal. Do not joke about that.''

''What do you think it was Hermione? Because I don't think I can listen to that noise again without stabbing my eardrums.'' Harry said, he really hoped the smart witch had an idea.

''I don't know yet, I need to go to the library to read about this noise. But I don't know where to start.'' She said with a little pout. Draco patted her head, earning a glare when he whispered 'cute little kitten.'

The flames flared up in the fireplace, and all head turned to see Sirius and Remus walking into the room.

Harry suddenly had an idea. ''Remus, your wolf hearing is better than that of regular humans, right?''

''Yes, Harry, because I'm a werewolf, my hearing is like that of a dog. I can hear very high pitch tones.'' Remus replied, a little confused as to why this was asked.

''Well, we just opened the egg, or clue, or whatever. And there was a very high pitch noise coming from it. I thought that maybe you could hear something in it that we can't.'' Harry explained.

''Dad, I don't think you want to hear it. It's really awful.'' Theo said, trying to protect Remus.

Remus practically melted because Theo had said dad, but didn't show it too much.

''I'll probably don't want to hear it indeed, but I would do anything to help Harry. So come on with it.''

''Wait! I'm getting out of here for just a moment because I don't want to hear it for a second time.'' Pansy said, before walking to Hermione's unused bedroom. Blaise and Ginny trailing behind her.

When the door closed, Harry again opened the egg. He looked at Remus, who almost crumbled to the floor at the sound. He went to close it again but saw Remus waving him off for a moment. When he nodded, Harry closed it as fast as he could.

''That was indeed awful, but I know why it sounds like this,'' Remus said while trembling a little—still coming around from the attack on his eardrums.

''What do you mean, Remus?'' Hermione asked before Harry could. ''It sounded like mermish.'' He explained. Draco let out a groan.

''Of course. There are merpeople in the lake. The second task is always in an environment where you are not familiar in. In this case, probably underwater.'' Draco said.

Silence rang in the room. Everybody lost in their thoughts.

''How can we listen to the clue, Remus?'' Harry asked.

''You will need to listen to it underwater. Unfortunately, nobody of you is a prefect. The dorms have no tubs, but in the prefects' bathrooms are like swimming pool-sized bathtubs.'' He said while thinking of another way. It was already too cold to dive into the lake.

Fred and George grinned, and Harry relaxed a little. They could probably help him get in. They had a way with Hogwarts that nobody could copy.

''Leave that.'' ''To us.'' The twins said while finishing each other sentences.

That same night, Harry got up with Draco and Hermione before getting under the invisibility cloak and making their way to the prefects' bathroom.

Fred and George had instructed them how they could open the bathroom without a password. The three of them were too tall to fit under the cloak together, so Draco had a notice-me-not charm on him.

It was the middle of the night. They broke many rules, outside their dorms when there was a curfew—taking a bath in the prefects' bathroom when they were not prefects—taking a bath with three people, two boys with one girl. It could mean getting expelled, but Draco and Hermione wouldn't bulge and insisted on coming with Harry.

They reached the bathroom and got in without any trouble.

''Woww. I really hope I become a prefect.'' Hermione said in awe when she looked around the beautiful bathroom and huge tub. Harry and Draco snorted a laugh. If Hermione didn't become a prefect, they really didn't know who could be in her place.

They undressed and got into the tub. After a few minutes of relaxing and seriously swimming laps because the tub was so big, they settled down on a ledge and got the egg.

''Here goes nothing,'' Harry said, and he opened the egg underwater. He didn't hear the noise that came out earlier. But he couldn't hear a clue.

He heard a giggle a little away from them. All three alert and got out their wands. By the tap was Moaning Myrtle. Harry shivered when he saw her thinking about the month they spend in the second corridor bathroom with her.

''Silly boys, and girl.'' She cooed, ''You have no permission to be here, do you?'' She was trying to look beyond the bubbles of foam. Hermione glared at her and was reaching for her wand.

Myrtle saw that, unfortunately. ''Na-ah-ah-ah, otherwise I will scream, and Filch will come.'' She said with glee.

Draco huffed out a breath, and Harry was shielding Hermione a little with his body. ''But you truly are silly. You need to put your head underwater if you want to hear the song.'' She giggled again when she saw the incredulous faces of the trio.

''Oo Harry, I missed you, did you miss me too?'' Myrtle cooed again, drifting closer to Harry. Who was trying to swim a little away from her. Hermione had had enough when Myrtle was distracted and nearly assaulting Harry, she got her wand. '' _Waddiwasi!''_

Myrtle shrieked and hurried away through the tap. The trio let out a collective breath when she finally was away.

''Potter, how come you always have people flirting with you? Even ghosts?'' Draco said with amusement in his voice by the byplay.

Harry punched him on the shoulder and gave Hermione a quick thank you kiss before opening the egg again and diving under. He saw Draco and Hermione diving with him.

_''Come seek us where our voices sound,_

_We cannot sing above the ground,_

_And while you're searching, ponder this;_

_We've taken what you'll sorely miss,_

_An hour-long you'll have to look,_

_And to recover what we took,_

_But past an hour, the prospect's black,_

_Too late, it's gone; it won't come back.''_

They got above the water and gasped for breath. Hermione had a contemplative look on her face, and Draco looked constipated.

''An hour? How the hell am I going to stay underwater for an hour?!'' Harry exclaimed. ''There are many possibilities, Harry, that truly isn't the biggest problem,'' Draco said with a strained voice.

Hermione and Harry both looked at Draco. ''What is it, Draco?'' Hermione asked. ''Let us listen to it a couple of times more. Just to be sure, and to remember it.'' Draco proposed looking anxious.

They listened to the song six times before Draco wanted to explain further. ''I don't think it's a 'what' there going to take. I think it's a who. It's going to be a rescue mission.'' Draco said, making Hermione gasp.

''Of course! Why didn't I think of that? Harry, this is going to be a complicated task.'' Hermione said before looking at Harry and almost shivering in fear.

He looked thunderous. He felt livid. Nobody, nobody was going to be taken from him. Not if he could help it. ''Draco, I need your help. I think we need to check some old tomes and confront the jury about the hostages they cannot take from me.'' He said with fury in his eyes.

Draco swallowed and nodded. They all know that if somebody were going to be taken from Harry who he would most miss, it would be Hermione or Draco. He had an idea what Harry was planning, but first, they needed to calm him down.

Hermione wrapped her arms around Harry's neck and kissed him, while Draco hugged him from the back and nibbled on his neck at pulse point. Within minutes he was putty in their hands and completely calmed down.

''We should go back to the dorm.'' He said with a sheepish grin on his face. Hermione and Draco agreed and got dressed, earning a little whine from Harry. They got back to the dorm without incident and fell in bed together, kissing and stroking and just enjoying each other.

* * *

''Dear students! Can I have your attention, please?'' McGonagall said while standing in front of the Great Hall. ''Thank you, I would like to announce the Yule Ball! This will be held on Christmas day! Every student above year four has been invited!'' A lot of excited murmurs were heard through the hall.

''That's why we needed dress robes!'' Pansy exclaimed happily. ''Oo Hermione! They are going to love your dress!'' She said while buttering her toast. Hermione just smirked at Draco and Harry's faces, who clearly wanted to know what for dress she would wear.

''You just have to go and wait, it's not Christmas yet!'' She said with a grin. The boys nearly pouted at that but understood. Before they could go to class, McGonagall interrupted.

''Mister Potter, I wanted to tell you that you need to open the Yule ball as one of the champions. Do you need any extra dance lessons?'' McGonagall asked with raised eyebrows.

Harry started sputtering, _dance lessons?_ ''Uhm, why do I need dance lessons? It's not like I'm needed to dance, right?'' He asked while looking at Draco and Hermione, who looked both amused and exasperated.

''Harry. Of course, you're going to dance. You're going with us.'' Draco said while smirking and pointing towards Hermione and himself. Harry groaned. He hated dancing, and then it just became so much worse.

''Mister Potter, because you're one of the champions, you're the one to open the ball. You'll need to dance for that, formally even.'' McGonagall said with a slight tilt to her lip, indicating that she thought this was funny!

Harry was mortified now. Dancing was one thing, but formally and in public? He paled drastically, and Draco and Hermione could feel his mortification through the bond.

Draco patted him on the back and started whispering in his ear. ''Love, don't worry, I have taken dance lessons until I ran away, and Hermione loves dancing, so we will teach you, mostly so you don't embarrass us, of course.'' He added with a smirk, earning a slap on the shoulder.

McGonagall scraped her throat to get the attention of the three. ''Mister Potter, you can only bring one date to the opening dance, not two.'' She said with a guilty look on her face.

Harry seriously pouted. How could he choose between Hermione and Draco? That was really unfair.

They got to class and dropped the subject; for now, walking into the classroom, they saw Prof. Moody standing behind his desk. Since the confrontation and his ending up against a wall, he didn't speak directly to them. What was fine with them.

It was a rather dull lesson, but that was expected if you got tutoring every two weeks with professional spells instead of the fourth year texts.

When the bell rang for the next lesson, Moody asked Harry to stay behind. He waved Hermione and Draco away, who hovered back and didn't like it one bit that Harry was alone with Moody.

''Potter, nice work with the flying on the first task. Are you okay? And did you already do something about the clue?'' Moody grunted, clearly wanting to know more about what Harry was doing.

''I'm fine, sir, and again I don't need any help. Everything is going rather smoothly.'' Harry said with a smirk. Noticing the stricken look on Moody's ugly face before his shields were back up, and his face was impassive.

It rather intrigued Harry what the end game was for Moody. He just couldn't figure it out. He got out of the classroom and felt through the bond that Draco and Hermione were in their common room, getting ready for lunch.

* * *

''Hermione! Please wait!'' A heavy French accent said behind her. Hermione spun around to see Fleur Delacour making her way to her.

''Goodmorning Fleur, how are you doing?'' Hermione asked when the blonde witch reached her. ''Very well, Hogwarts is a very beautiful place, not as beautiful as Beauxbatons, of course, but beautiful.'' She said, a little breathless, thinking of her own school.

Hermione nodded, and they talked a little more while walking over the grounds of Hogwarts. She could feel Harry and Draco checking in on her through the bonds, and she sent a message back that she was okay and just talking to Fleur.

''How did you do it? How are you mated to them?'' Fleur finally asked. She was looking with wonder at Hermione.

''Mated? I don't know what you mean by that.'' Hermione asked, confused that she didn't know any of this.

''Well, maybe it's a little different for just witches or wizards, but when you're a creature or part creature, that's how we call it when we find our soulmate. I can even feel the bonds swirling around the three of you. It's almost finished, isn't it?'' Fleur asked with glee.

Hermione swallowed. She knew precisely what Fleur was referring to and really wasn't up to it to discuss her sex life with Fleur.

''Uhm. Well, we are soulmates, but it was not that I could feel it the instant I saw them. They were eleven, and I was twelve when we first met. And the first two years, Harry and I were best friends, we didn't even like Draco.'' She laughed a little at that, oh how things could change.

Fleur was listening intently and urging her on. ''In the summer of the third year, we helped Draco and bonded. Not romantically, just friendly, and in the school year, that changed. I always had a crush on Harry and Draco, even if they were sometimes acting like gits, but I always was drawn to them.''

''When we went on our first date, I really didn't expect it. They tricked me into thinking I would help Harry with homework, but they had their brooms with them waiting on the tower, and a picnic. I detested flying. I hate heights, but they flew with me, and it was amazing.'' She let out a sigh, thinking back about what happened last year.

''They apparently were not taking me out on a date, they just wanted to do something with me and get over my fear of heights and flying, but they were very willing when I asked.'' She smiled at that, and Fleur laughed a little.

''When I thanked them with a kiss on the cheek, when I now think back to it, I could feel the bond forming. I also knew that they felt something towards each other, so I set them up to let them know I was okay with it. That was the first time they kissed each other that night. A couple of weeks later, I kissed both of them, since then the bond is there, but I only figured out that we were soulmates this summer.''

When she stopped talking, Fleur was looking at her with adoration. ''So it's not that you are only in a relationship with them, but they also have a relationship?'' She asked with awe in her voice.

Hermione nodded and smiled. It wasn't unusual in the magical world, but it still didn't happen often.

''I really am jealous of you, Hermione,'' Fleur sighed, and Hermione laughed. ''Why would you be? You're strong, smart, beautiful, heck every boy, and some girls, swoon when they see you.''

Fleur looked saddened by that, and Hermione put her arm on her shoulder, startling the other witch, but she didn't pull away.

''Because I'm part Veela boys and men, and sometimes women, swoon when they see me, it's the Veela charm, and I hate it. I don't ever know if somebody likes me because they like me for me, or the Veela part.'' Fleur said with sadness.

Hermione was having none of that and wanted to help the girl. ''You know what you need? You need a girl's night.'' She smiled when Fleur looked puzzled.

She sent off a couple of patronesses to her friends and to ask them to come to her dorm room with everything for a nice girls' night. Then she pulled Fleur with her and got into her common room. Harry and Draco were relaxing and reading on the couch, Harry had his head in Draco's lap, and it looked adorable.

They both looked up when they entered, and there was a surprised look on their faces before they both groaned. ''We need to get out of here, don't we?'' Draco said with a raised eyebrow.

''Well, you could stay, but Pansy, Ginny, Luna, Lavender, Parvati, Daphne, Milly, and Tracy will be here within ten minutes for a girl's night.'' She said while pouting a little. She knew exactly what she needed to do to get her way.

Draco rolled his eyes with a fond smile on his lips. ''We will sleep in the Slytherin rooms tonight,'' Draco said while trying to stand with Harry still in his lap, who yelped and almost fell on the floor.

They both gave Hermione a searing kiss and got out of their room. When the door closed, Fleur stared in awe. ''You really have them both winded on your finger, don't you?'' Hermione just laughed at that.

* * *

''Hermininny?'' Hermione looked up from her text, which she was reading in an alcove in the library when she was interrupted.

''Viktor? Can I help you?'' She asked the Quidditch player. He looked a little uncomfortable. ''I vanted to ask you if you vould like to go to Ball with me?'' He asked with a heavy accent.

Hermione was startled; she knew that he should know that she was with Draco and Harry, why on earth would he still ask her?

''Uh, no Viktor. I have two boyfriends, so I'm not going with you. Sorry.'' She didn't feel like she needed to apologize, but it was polite, wasn't it?

He looked struck and sad; Hermione almost felt sorry for him. He merely nodded and walked away. After a few moments, Harry and Draco appeared in front of her.

''Why are you sad, Mione?'' Harry asked while pulling her up for a hug. ''Viktor asked me to the Yule Ball when I said no, he just looked like a kicked puppy. I felt bad for him.'' She explained while playing with Harry's hair in the nape of his neck.

Through their bond, she felt that both boys were mad at Viktor, and she rolled her eyes before placing her hand on both of their shoulders.

''I said no, you don't need to make him feel even worse because he tried to ask me out.'' She said while rolling her eyes when both boys looked at each other.

They silently agreed, and they walked towards the Great Hall for diner. When they entered, Fleur fluttered to them and started talking excitedly with Hermione.

They were becoming fast friends, and Hermione was glad. ''Harry, do you know who you're going to take for the opening dance?'' Fleur asked the green-eyed wizard, who almost choked in his food, not expecting a question for him.

''Uh, no. I don't want to choose between Hermione or Draco.''

''Well, I don't want to go with any boy who just wants me for my Veela charm. So I was thinking, maybe we could go as friends? Then Draco and Hermione could go together, we can switch after the first dance so you can dance with each of them, but I want a turn too!'' She explained while being very bubbly.

Harry looked at Hermione and Draco; both looked a little startled by the offer, but not mad.

''I think that's a perfect idea, Draco and I are not compelled by your charm, and we all can have fun. So if my significant others don't have any trouble with this, I gladly accept your offer.'' Harry said, sounding like Lord Potter of the ancient house he truly was.

Hermione and Draco both smiled, ''Yes, of course, we don't have any trouble with this idea, but maybe you should join our dance lessons to Harry so you can grow accustomed to being stepped on your toes.'' Draco said with a smirk earning a soft slap on his arm by Hermione, who was holding in her laughter.

Fleur just laughed and agreed to join their dance lessons and see if Harry indeed was dreadful as they made it sound.

They danced every other night, Fleur and Harry both looked lovely dancing together. Light and Dark in stark contrast. Harry was a quick learner and barely stepped on her toes anymore.

The night of the dance, Harry and Draco got ready together, Hermione was whisked away with all her friends to get ready with them.

Harry had black robes with dark green in it, and Draco had white robes with silver. When they got down to the Great Hall, Fleur greeted them, who looked lovely in a silver dress with feathers.

They talked while waiting for the rest of their friends. Harry was looking around. He still hadn't seen Hermione. Then he saw a flash of red, and Ginny bounded to them, dragging her date Blaise with her. Neville was with Luna just behind them, and Theo and Pansy were also walking over.

''Where is Hermione? I haven't seen her yet.'' Harry said to the group while looking sad. The girls rolled their eyes and turned.

On the top of the stairs stood Hermione. Her hair was up, and it looked like she was glowing with confidence. A little smile gracing her lips, and her eyes lit up when she saw Draco and Harry standing side to side, looking like Ying and Yang in their black and white robes.

She was wearing a green dress that hugged her figure. It was the same color as Harry's eyes. When she was finally down the stairs, they both pulled her in a hug kissing the sides of her head while saying how beautiful she was.

When they stood there, they could see that she was wearing a silver hanger and had grey eyeshadow gracing her brown eyes. She got the boys' eye colors in her dress and her accessories, and they were touched that she had done that.

Harry was pulled away a little by an amused Fleur. ''Harry, we are needed to go for the opening dance!'' He reluctantly let go of Hermione and Draco and got in line with the other champions.

His friends got in the Great Hall, and they waited in the hallway until they could get in to open the ball.

He tensed a little when somebody leaned over to whisper in his ear. ''You look great, Harry, to bad you're already taken.'' He heard Cedric say.

He turned around to look Cedric in the eye and smiled. ''Thank you, Cedric, you look great yourself. Who is your date?'' Harry turned towards the Asian witch on his side.

''This is Cho, she is my best friend. She is gay but isn't ready to come out yet, so we just decided to go together.'' Cedric whispered to Harry so nobody else could hear.

''Nice to meet you, Cho, if you want anybody to talk to about that, a good friend of mine just came out, and hell, I just came out last year when I started dating Hermione and Draco. So if you need any help, just let us know.'' He said to the witch, who looked relieved that there was no judgment.

''I might take you up on that, Harry, thank you!'' Cho responded. Harry smiled at her before turning back to the Great Hall to enter.

The first dance was amazing, and he didn't step on Fleur toes once! He was very smug about that. When they got seated for dinner, he spotted Draco and Hermione across the hall and waved at them. They waved back and got into a conversation with the rest of their table with all of their friends.

He looked around his table and saw that the jury was seated across from him. _That's convenient._ He thought to himself. He ordered something to eat for himself and talked with Fleur for a bit. Before he turned around towards Luda Bagman, he was seated next to Percy Weasley, who looked smug that he was falling in for his boss.

''Gentlemen, I have a question about the second task.'' He started, everyone on the table stopped eating and stared at him. _O, this is going to be fun._

''Harry! You understand that we cannot tell you anything about the second task, so no hints!'' Ludo exclaimed. Harry smirked, _yes this is going great._

''I don't need any hints. I just wanted to remind you that you cannot hold anyone against their will in the water for an hour. So I really just want to warn you.'' He leveled a glare towards Ludo and Percy.

''If you touch Hermione or Draco or anyone else who matters to me, I will make sure that with the influence of the house Potter, you two never get a job again in the ministry or banking world. You probably know how much power my name has, and that's just Potter. I know for a fact that the heir of Black isn't to keen on being kidnapped for a tournament. So I really advise you to go another way for the second task.''

Everybody was silent for a moment. Then all hell broke loose. ''How did you find out already?'' ''What? You will not take anybody I know into the water!'' ''Did you cheat?'' ''Harry, how did you know that they are going to take people?'' ''Nobody is going to touch or take anyone hostage I love!''

Percy looked terrified of the threat of no job in the ministry and was shouting that he couldn't already know what the second task was.

Harry held up his hand, and everybody grew silent. They could feel that Harry was powerful, not only in name, but his magic felt strong.

''I knew the day after the first task. I found out that if you open the egg underwater, you can hear the merpeople sing. We have merpeople in the lake, so it's obvious that the second task is in the lake, and if you listen to the words carefully, you can hear that they are going to take someone and that they are lost forever if not returned after an hour. When I found out, I wanted to make sure nobody would be taken from me. Hence, I started this conversation with all of you present.'' He waved his hand over the people at the table.

Ludo looked ready to throw up, McGonagall looked livid, probably not knowing that this was the second task's plan, and all the other champions also looked struck and furious.

Fleur spoke next, ''I will not participate if anyone is taken from me.'' Then she looked towards her Headmistress, who nodded in encouragement.

Next was Cedric, ''I will also not participate, I don't care what the consequences are.'' Harry nodded at him. He was sure that the jury would not let it happen and change their plan before this was necessary.

''I agree with my fellow champions.'' Harry just said, looking at Vikter with narrow eyes, seizing him up.

The champion looked conflicted but resolute. ''I also vill not play in the tournament iv this will not change.'' Harry dipped his head at him.

''Well, it seems that's it's clear, gentlemen. Change the second task, take something, and not someone, and you have four happy contestants. If not. Well, let's not find that out, agreed?'' He leveled his look at them and raised his eyebrow, waiting for an answer.

''Agreed.'' Ludo and Percy said almost immediately. Harry nodded at that, a smug smile gracing his lips.

''Well, now that's settled, who's up for dessert?'' He said while smiling at his dinner companions.


	22. Chapter 22

**Hi!**

**Sorry for the long wait, a lot was going on, and didn't really like the first couple of drafts of this chapter... I will get another chapter online as soon as possible!**

**I don't own Harry Potter!**

* * *

''Harry?'' Harry looked up from his book about transfiguration to look up at Neville.

''Yes? What can I do for you, Neville?'' Harry said. Hermione, Draco, and Pansy were sitting with him in the library and also stopped with what they were doing.

''Well, it's about the tournament for the second task, I was thinking, maybe you don't need to practice transfiguration or a bubblehead charm. Perhaps you can just use Gillyweed.'' Neville said while pulling a book from his bag.

It was halfway January, and Harry, Hermione, Draco, Sirius, Remus, and all of their friends were looking for a way to let Harry breathe underwater for an hour.

Harry was alert in an instant. ''What's Gillyweed, Neville?'' Neville started searching for something in his book before finding it and handing the book over to Harry.

Harry started reading the use of Gilllyweed while Hermione was leaning over to read with him. Hermione was finished faster and pulled Neville into a hug.

''Amazing Neville! This is exactly what we needed. Now we only need to get Gillyweed somewhere.'' She said while already thinking ahead.

Harry beamed at Neville and clapped him on the shoulder for the great idea. It was a relief to have a plan for the second task.

Neville got flustered but was pleased that he could help. ''You can order it through owl, but Snape has also somewhat in his personal stock.'' He told them before saying goodbye and leaving.

Draco immediately went to the dungeons to ask Snape for a sample of Gillyweed so they could test it first before deciding on this option.

He returned within half an hour, holding a container with slimy green roots.

''Snape got me a little bit so you can test it before the task, but he said that if you are going to use more, you need to order it yourself,'' Draco explained, and Harry was glad that Draco was Snape's godson.

They got up and went outside to the lake. Harry pouting along the way because it was cold, okay?!

Harry got out of his robes and stood shivering on one of the docks before eating the Gillyweed. The first minute nothing happened, and then, he couldn't breathe anymore. He grabbed his throat and saw Draco and Hermione panicking and reaching out before he stumbled and went down into the water.

He could breathe again and felt a tingling in his hands and feet. After a while, he looked at his hands and feet and saw that they had transformed. They looked like frog hands and feet with membranes between them.

He swam to the surface to let Draco and Hermione know he was fine. When he resurfaced, he couldn't breathe right, but it was manageable.

He tried to speak, but his vocal cords didn't work right, and there was only a screeching noise. Hermione and Draco looked relieved and started to laugh when they heard the noise.

''Harry, try swimming a little bit, you're not cold, are you? Do you think you can find the merpeople already? How are you feeling? Silly, you can't talk.'' Hermione rattled before nodding.

''We will wait here, Harry, please be careful,'' Draco said while taking Hermione's hand and settling down on the dock. Harry just nodded and dove back in the water.

Harry swam around but couldn't find the merpeople. He did found the giant squid and was trapped in an ink cloud for a while before just swimming up and around.

When he saw that the membranes were retracting, he swam as fast as possible to the surface and the docks. Hermione and Draco were reading when they spotted him and conjured a blanket and dry clothes so Harry could be warm.

He explained that he didn't find the village, but he did know where not to look, so it was something.

Back at the castle and in their dorm, they got ready for their evening lesson with Remus and Sirius. All their friends joined them, and they were just talking before Draco noticed that Sirius and Remus were late.

''Where do you think they are? They are never late or have never been late before. It wasn't a full moon last night, right?'' Theo asked, looking around a little nervous.

''No, it wasn't. Should we send them a message? Maybe they just are still reading about Horcruxes or something. They do most of the work nowadays because we have school.'' Pansy said. The others were contemplating this before a knock sounded at the door.

Harry opened the door to reveal a sour-looking McGonagall. ''Mister Potter, Black and Lupin, please follow me.'' Theo, Draco, and Harry were up out of their chairs in an instant.

''Headmistress, you know we will know what happened right after, do they need to leave?'' Hermione asked, a little nervous. They all got a bad feeling that this was about Sirius and Remus.

McGonagall was looking around before nodding to herself and starting to speak.

''About an hour ago, there was an attack on Diagon Alley, Mister Lupin and Black were on the scene and helped the Aurors to their full capacity. Unfortunately, they were injured. They are now at St. Mungos. I wanted to take Mister Potter, Black, and Lupin to them right now.'' She explained as calm as she could muster.

Hermione was on her feet in an instant, Pansy right after. ''We are coming with you, I know we are not their official wards, but-'' Hermione stopped talking when she saw McGonagall holding her hand up.

''I was expecting that, please come, I know I can't stop you.'' She turned around and walked out of the dorm. Harry, Draco, Theo, Pansy, and Hermione on her heal after telling their other friends that they will keep them posted.

Within half an hour, they were standing in a waiting room in St. Mungos, waiting before they could see Remus and Sirius.

They only were told that Sirius and Remus were out of danger but still needed to wait before they could see them. The teens waited for about an hour before being able to see Sirius and Remus.

They piled into the room and saw the paleness of Sirius, he wasn't awake, but Harry, Draco, and Hermione crowded his bed first. Remus was awake and was tackled in a hug by Theo. Pansy was standing behind Theo and patting his back while Theo sobbed softly into Remus's shoulder.

Draco turned to Remus, not leaving Sirius's side and holding his hand. ''What happened?'' He asked the werewolf.

''We were in Diagon Alley, we just finished in Knockturn Alley for more books about the Dark Arts, looking for more information about Horcruxes. We heard an explosion and saw Death Eaters walking amongst screaming witches and wizards. We thought that after the Quidditch World Cup, they wouldn't try anything until Voldy was back, but we were wrong. They attacked just to create panic and havoc.'' He said with distaste. Still holding onto Theo, getting comfort from the boy and comforting him in return.

Harry was feeling angrier with the minute; his knuckles were white from clasping his hand in a fist. Hermione put a hand in the nape of his neck to calm him down a little.

''We were helping civilians towards the exit when there was an explosion right next to us. We were hit with a lot of glass from a window. Sirius got in front of a witch we were helping. The self-sacrificing bastard.'' He growled the last sentence, clearly not approving of the fact that Sirius got hurt because he was helping someone.

''Sirius went down, and I started dueling a Death Eater before I got hit with two curses at once and also went down. I just woke up before you were let in. Because of my werewolf healing, I feel a lot better. Sirius will be out for probably two days.'' Remus told them, looking sadder with the minute.

Harry let Sirius go and went to Remus to hug him. ''Thank you for defending Sirius. He will not say it himself, the stubborn dog.'' Harry grumbled in Remus's ear. Remus chuckled in response.

''I did it also for myself, Harry, you know I couldn't live without him for a second time,'' Remus whispered in Harry's ear. Harry feels his throat constricting and barely contains a whimper. Remus still heard it, of course, with his wolf hearing and pulled Harry tighter in a hug.

When Harry has pulled himself together, he sends a Patronus message to McGonagall, requesting that the five of them have the day off tomorrow.

He gets a message back within five minutes that it's already taken care of and that they have permission to come back to the castle on Sunday, she also asks them if they need help for transportation, but Harry declines the offer.

They travel between Potter Manor and St. Mungos through the floo network in the next days. Pansy and Theo also are living there in the summer holidays and whenever they can get home.

Technically, Hermione still lives with her parents and Pansy with them as their ward, but since her parents know of the bond, they are more at Potter Manor.

It's in the afternoon on Saturday that Sirius wakes up. Groggy still from the wounds he got, but he's awake and glad to see everyone. Remus has recovered enough to go home but didn't leave Sirius's side.

''Bloody Death Eaters, you would think they learned their lesson after the world cup, imbeciles,'' Sirius grumbles when trying to sit up and wincing because of the healing injuries. Remus pushes him back into a lying position, Sirius just glares. Clearly to weak to protest.

''Were any of them arrested?'' Sirius tries to ask while groaning with pain.

''No. There were a few injured, but no one was arrested.'' Remus tells them. Harry and Draco went rigid, hearing that. They couldn't let them get away with what they did.

''So what can we do? Do we even know who they were?'' Harry asks. He was already plotting in his head to get revenge on Sirius.

''Harry, you will not hunt them down just because they hurt me. We have a plan, and we will stick to it. And you know this plan is to get the Horcruxes and destroy them all before Voldemort gets power again.'' Sirius hissed. He saw the glint in Harry's eyes and knew what the boy was thinking of.

''Sirius, you know I cannot walk away from this. They have hurt innocent people! They have hurt you! And they will do it again! We need to do something!'' Harry hissed back, exasperated that they were even having this discussion.

Draco was silently agreeing with Harry but knew that this was not the time or place for this discussion. ''Harry, we will do something about it, but let's talk about plans another time.'' He whispered to Harry. Loud enough that Sirius and Remus could hear it too.

Harry nodded and calmed down. After a while, they went back to Potter Manor, just the teens. Sirius needed to stay for another night, and Remus was staying with him. They would visit again on Sunday before going back to Hogwarts.

After settling in the dining room and getting a nice hot diner from the House-elves, Harry began.

''We need to do something to stop these attacks, or at least need to find the Horcruxes so we can do something about Voldemort,'' Harry said while pacing the room.

The others nodded; Theo and Pansy both knew everything about what was happening and what needed to be done.

''We know how we can destroy them, and how they are created, we only need to know which ones are from Voldemort, and where they are. I think we need to learn more about Voldemort's life. I have been reading crime journals of muggles, and there is a study of profiling. They use that to find killers and others who broke the law. I think we can use that to profile Voldemort. So we maybe get to know what he did turn into Horcruxes.'' Hermione says while having a faraway look in her eyes.

Harry and Draco were thinking about it, and it seemed like a good idea to know more about the man to get hints, maybe. ''How do you think we can get this information? We need to contact people that have known him. We already know that his real name is Tom Riddle.'' Draco muses.

Theo sat a little straighter, ''You are not going to like this, but I think you need to contact Dumbledore again.'' The other teen's al looked rather appalled by the idea.

''Listen, he knew Tom at school, right? He gave the man lessons, so if you think about it, it is logical to talk to him about Tom's past.''

Harry, Draco, Hermione, and Pansy all agreed to this. They all knew that Dumbledore probably would again try to wiggle his way back into society, but they rather liked it that they didn't have to do anything with the old goat.

''Oké, so we need a plan to contact him again, and we need a plan to get him to tell us more about Tom.'' Harry summarised. They agreed, and Hermione took over.

''We also still need to do something about the Horcrux in you, Harry, I know you don't want to talk about it, but if you think about it, we need to do the ritual as soon as possible. We already sent the letter to Gringrotts to ask for help.'' She said while looking with sympathy to Harry.

Harry merely nodded. It was rather remarkable that they had found the ritual to part a wayward soul from someone. It seemed like an exorcism, but it needed to be performed by goblins. The other Horcruxes could be destroyed by Friendfyre or basilisk venom. If they were going to take them all out at once, they would probably use Friendfyre. That's why they all have been training to control that since they found out of Horcruxes.

''I don't think that we can do it anytime faster than the end of the school year, because it will drain my magical recourses and would be a blow to my physical resources as well,'' Harry said. Hermione looked like she was thinking about it, but seemed to come to the same conclusion. Although she really was not happy with that.

''Oké, so we will wait until the summer to perform the ritual, but we don't have to stop looking for the Horcruxes in the meantime. If we can collect them and destroy them together, it would be best.'' Draco said.

The others nodded, and they went to their own rooms for the night. All of them thinking and exhausted from the last couple of days, and knowing it wouldn't be the last.

* * *

" _Well, all our champions are ready for the second task, which will start on my whistle. They have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them._ " Ludo Bagman pronounced.

Harry was a little shivering in his swimsuit. He already had the Gillyweed in his hand and was waving to Draco and Hermione, who were cheering for him with Sirius, Remus, and their other friends.

He was shivering from nerves and the cold, and he needed to dive in the bloody lake within a minute. ''Fuck my life.'' He whispered under his breath, but apparently loud enough for Fleur, who giggled before putting her game face on.

There was a loud whistle, and Harry put the Gillyweed in his mouth and started to chew before diving in the water. After a minute, he could breathe again, and when he looked to his hands and feet, he saw fins and started to swim.

He went to the other side of the lake now. He didn't see any of the other champions and just kept swimming.

After half an hour, he saw the first signs of a village. When he got closer, he could hear the merpeople sing. He saw the merpeople swimming around him. They kept to themselves, so Harry wasn't going to prevent them in any way and just kept going.

At the center of the village were four poles. He saw that one of them had a broom attached to it, another a box or something, the third had a necklace, and the last one was for him. He saw his invisibility cloak floating in the water and swore. Everybody was going to see the cloak, and now it was wet. Assholes.

They probably wanted to get a little payback because he forced their hands to change the task. He rolled his eyes and got his cloak free and swam as fast as he could back to were he came from.

In ten minutes, he was back at the surface and swam back to the tribunes. A lot of cheering and clapping was heard; when he looked at the dock, he saw Fleur already there, but she was scraped and bruised.

When he reached the docks, he put a finite incatatem on himself so the Gillyweed would stop working.

''Fleur, are you alright?'' He asked the blonde witch. She was glaring at the water but seemed fine. ''Yes, Arry, I'm fine, grindylows attacked me, those nasty creatures forced me to stop. I don't even know what they took from me, and I really ope I will get it back.'' She said, while looking sad.

''Could it be a necklace? Because I saw it when I got my. thing..'' He said. Fleur nodded and looked almost sadder. ''Yes, it probably is the necklace of my grandmother. I'm glad it just is a necklace and not someone like you said it would be at the ball.''

Harry patted her arm, ''You will get it back, if they do not get it for you, I will jump back in for you.'' He said, and got a smile in return.

He was a little warmer now and got hugged from the back by Draco; Hermione hugged him from the front and stood there for a minute before letting go. All three of them really glad that Harry was safe again.

They heard a flash go off and saw Skeeter with her photographer. All three of them rolled their eyes when she started speaking. At that moment, Sirius and Remus reached them and steered them away from the horrible woman.

''Miss Skeeter, do you have permission from Harry to interview him?'' Sirius asked in a cool voice. She squeaked a little but shook her head.

''Than I will advise you to get away, like right now.'' Remus stepped in, looking manacing with the scars on his face. She turned away and pulled the photographer with her. When they were out of earshot, the group started to laugh.

''Well, can we go and celebrate? I really want to lay in front of a fire with hot chocolate.'' Harry said after a while, still waiting for Cedric and Viktor. It was rather dull because they just saw the lake, and not what was going on beneath the surface.

They couldn't go until all the contestants were above water and the points were given. After another few minutes, Cedric emerged from the lake. And right before the hour was up, Viktor also came back.

Harry got the most points, just like the first task, and had the first place, Cedric was now second, Viktor third, and Fleur fourth because she didn't finish her second task.

Harry walked with Hermione and Draco back to the castle and was glad that the second task's drama was done. Only the last task was left. He didn't intend to win the tournament, but it was going rather smooth. He just wished that he wouldn't jinx it.

* * *

Draco was walking back from his ancient runes class to the Great Hall. He was feeling a little off. It felt like somebody was watching him, but he shrugged the feeling before continuing.

When he got to the third floor, he heard someone walking, the corridor was empty for so far as he could see, but he knew that something was wrong and started walking faster.

Draco heard the start of a curse and ducked behind one of the armors in the corridor before sending a message through the bond to Harry and Hermione.

He felt the curse hit the wall behind him and got his wand out. He still couldn't see his attacker but put a silent Finite Incantatum in the corridor and saw the glamour shift.

Draco saw the snarling face of Moody and gulped. The wizard was an old Auror and would probably be too strong for him alone to defeat. He could feel Harry and Hermione running towards him, but he didn't know if they would be in time.

''Professor, how lovely to see you here today. Was my homework on the stunner spell not good enough?'' He said in a sarcastic drawl before putting his shield up to deflect the new curse headed for him.

''Malfoy! Your father was a disgrace. He should have taken his punishment instead of pleading the imperious curse. He shouldn't have gotten away freely as he did!'' Moody snarled before attacking again.

''It's Black! I know that that sperm donor is a disgrace, but why are you attacking me if I already distanced myself from him?'' Draco snarled back. Feeling like he maybe could stretch the time before Harry and Hermione would arrive.

''Because you are in the way of the Dark Lords' plans,'' Moody said. Draco stiffened. He was pretty sure that Moody was one of the good guys, even if he was a creep.

Draco was standing now and still holding onto his shield while Moody was firing curse after curse at him. He send a message to Harry from which way they could attack best in this corridor.

''How am I in the way? I didn't do anything to provoke him as far as I know. And wasn't he dead because of a baby?'' Draco taunted. If Moody really was a Death Eater, he could probably distract him before the cavalry would arrive.

Moody's face contorted, and he looked like he was in pain. His hair started to grow, and it was getting darker. Moody snarled and attacked even more viciously. Draco was barely standing before he heard two voices scream, ''Stupify!''

Moody fell down like a log. Draco was panting and sat down hard on the floor before being engulfed in Hermione's soft hug.

''What happened, Draco?'' She asked softly while checking for injuries on Draco. Draco heard a crack and looked up to see Harry standing over the body of Moody, who it seemed had a bloody nose now.

''Moody attacked me, saying things about how my father was a traitor and how I was in the way of the Dark Lords plans,'' Draco said while still looking at Moody's form. It seemed like he was still changing or something.

Harry was looking at Moody with a disturbed look on his face. ''Guys, I don't think that this is Moody..''

Hermione helped Draco to his feet, and together they walked back to Harry. Harry put his arms around Draco's neck for a quick hug before looking back at the man on the floor. Who was still changing and not looking like Moody at all at the moment.

''We should call McGonagall,'' Hermione whispered before sending a Patronus.

''I will call Sirius and Remus. They should know about this if Hogwarts has been compromised.'' Harry mused, still looking down at the man.

''We already knew it was compromised when your name came out of the Goblet. How much do you wanna bet that this is the asshole who did that?'' Draco said, his hands were also itching to hit the bastard, but he refrained.

''Harry, do you have the map with you?'' Hermione asked, looking up at the dark-haired wizard. He nodded and got the map from his pocket.

''I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.'' He whispered and unfolded the map until he saw the right corridor. He gasped when he saw the name.

''Who is it, Harry?'' Hermione asked, anxious.

''According to the map, Barty Crouch.''


	23. Chapter 23

**Ola! Sorry that it took a little longer to update. I was lost for a moment for how I wanted to continue. Don't worry, I'm not going to abandon this story because I truly love it.**

**AND I LOVE THE REVIEWS! THANK YOU SO MUCH!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own shit about HP.**

**Oh yeah, a little smut in this chapter. ENJOY!**

* * *

The room looked rather crowded when Harry looked around. Madam Bones was there, Remus and Sirius, McGonagall, three Aurors, and the triad, all in the Headmistress' office. And of course, Barty Crouch.

''So, you were attacked by this man when you were just walking the corridor?'' Madam Bones asked for what felt like the hundredth time. Harry saw Draco roll his eyes.

''Yes, Madam, at first I thought it was Professor Moody, but when he was out of it, he started changing back. We didn't know what his name was until you told us.'' They couldn't tell Bones or McGonagall that they had a map to see everything in Hogwarts.

''This man is supposed to be dead, so excuse me if I want to find out everything that happened.'' Madam Bones snapped. Harry barely held himself back from retorting and rolling his eyes but managed.

''Well, he doesn't look dead to me, so...'' Draco said, exasperated. One of the Aurors seemed to growl at his comment but doesn't say anything.

Barty Crouch was still unconscious but would wake up soon, according to Madam Pomfrey, who just was there for checking on Draco and, unfortunately, Crouch.

There was a knocking on the door before Bones could flip out. Snape strolled in and handed Bones a vial. ''The veritaserum as you requested, Madam.''

''Thank you, Severus. When he wakes up, we can question him. Please, I want to ask that everybody leaves the room except the Aurors.'' She said.

McGonagall and Snape nodded and were going to leave, but Sirius, Remus, Draco, Hermione, and Harry objected.

''He attacked my son, and I'm an old Auror, I'm staying.''

''I'm not going to leave my mate here alone with that Death Eater.''

''That asshole attacked me, if dad is staying, I'm staying too; he will tell us everything after anyway.''

''We think he trapped Harry to participate in the tournament. I want to know why.''

Harry was the last and listened to what everyone said before opening his mouth.

''To be honest, I wanna see him squirm, he talked about the Dark Lord, I want to know what the plan is, and that plan involves me and my soulmates. I'm not leaving this room before I got answers.''

Madam Bones just sighed. ''Bloody knew that I couldn't get you out of the room.'' She mumbled, resigned. ''Fine, you can stay, but we are going to interview him first before you get your turn.''

Harry nodded; he knew that she meant for him to ask the questions after she was finished.

''Everybody ready?'' Everyone in the room just nodded and fixated their stares at the prick in the middle.

Madam Bones said a spell, and Crouch gasped for breath. Before he could do anything else, his mouth was forced open, and the three drops were put on his tongue.

''What's your name?'' Bones asked after Crouch's eyes glazed over.

''Barty Crouch Junior.'' Came the robotic response.

''Why are you at Hogwarts?''

''To impersonate Alastor Moody.''

''When did you start to impersonate him?''

''The day before term.''

''What is your motive to do this?''

''To bring my master back.''

''Who is your master?''

''The great Dark Lord, the Dark Lord Voldemort.''

The Aurors, Madam Bones, and McGonagall all gasped at that information. But Snape and the others already suspected that this was the reason behind the infiltration.

Harry couldn't hold back anymore.

''Did you put my name in the goblet?''

''Yes.''

''Why?''

''Because you are needed for the ritual to bring my master back.''

''What was the plan to 'get' me?''

''The cup at the last task will be a portkey, with that portkey, you will be transported to him, your blood will be taken, and he will kill you. He will praise me. He will reward me as his most loyal follower. I did everything to help him, and my lord will know this.'' Crouch said, sounding more manic with the minute.

Harry was disgusted. This man was here the whole year; he tried to gain his trust and would happily send him to his death—the asshole.

''Potter, stand back.'' Bones said. Harry put up his hands as a sign that he would take a step back.

Madam Bones nodded at him and turned back to Crouch.

''Where is the real Moody?''

''In his trunk in the office, 7th layer.'' Came the curt reply.

''Are you working alone?''

''No.''

''Who are you-'' Her question was rudely interrupted when a blast was heard from the fireplace, and the entire room was turned black.

Harry threw himself at Draco and Hermione and made them duck for cover. When the smoke that was causing the room go black was siphoned away, they saw that the seat where Crouch sat was empty.

''Motherfucker!'' Bones yelled. The other Aurors were looking frantically around and waiting for orders.

Harry got up and helped Hermione up, who was shaking a little.

''Shh, breath love, everything is going to be okay.'' Harry softly said while rubbing Hermione's back. Draco was on her other side, looking worried. Hermione took a couple of deep breaths and smiled at her boys.

''I'm fine, I just can't believe that that prick has gotten away.'' She grumbled. Harry kissed the side of her head and then turned to kiss Draco on the lips. They looked around and saw that Bones was now barking orders to the Aurors to find Crouch and the culprit that helped him.

Harry sighed. He could've known that something was going to happen at the tournament. That there were other motives why he needed to participate, but to hear it was for a ritual is not something you want to hear.

''We need to cancel the last task!'' McGonagall cried.

''We cannot do that! We need to set up a trap for the followers of that madmen. The Dark Lord is dead; what they are trying is necromancy; it's illegal and goes against all the laws of nature.'' Madam Bones replied.

Before McGonagall or Sirius could reply to Bones, Harry began.

''Madam Bones is right. We need to capture those people before they are going to try anything.''

''Harry, you are not going to figure as bait!'' Hermione hissed. Draco nodded along, looking angrier with the minute that Harry was considering this.

''Mione, Dray, loves, we all know that that is precisely what's going to happen.'' Before they could interrupt, Harry put up his hands. ''But with a good plan, we don't need to worry; we also have our own project going that we need to finish, with that we know for sure that the Dark Lord is going away forever.'' The last was said in a whisper, but Draco and Hermione both caught it.

''Potter, we will talk about this; we do not want you to get hurt in any way,'' Draco said while indicating between him and Hermione.

Harry smiled at them; he was feeling the love. (Yes, he was a sap. Sue him.)

Harry clapped his hands and turned back to Madam Bones, who was watching the interaction intently.

''Madam Bones, we will help where ever we can. This means that the tournament can continue with the last task. And hopefully, we can take the terrorist organization down before they get their lead madmen back.''

Sirius snorted at that and grinned at his godson. He felt proud that Harry wasn't going to back down. He knew how scared Harry was for all of this with Voldemort, but he wasn't a Gryffindor for nothing.

Harry smirked at McGonagall's dumbfounded expression.

''Mr. Potter, I truly recommend to not agree with this! It could be dangerous.''

''Headmistress, thank you for your concern. I really feel warmed by it, but nonetheless, I need to confront Voldemort. I'm willing to do anything to postpone that as long as I can. I need training for that, even more than I already have. And I don't delude myself that he won't come back eventually.''

When he was done speaking, he looked around the room and saw the Aurors, Madam Bones, and McGonagall looking abashed. Even Snape looked uncomfortable.

''What do you mean that you need to confront Voldemort Potter?'' Snape sneered. He looked paler than usual.

''Because I know of the prophecy that has been made in my name and that of Voldemort,'' Harry said while staring Snape down. Who was looking like he had been hit in the face.

''Prophecy? What prophecy?'' Bones interrupted.

''The prophecy which was made 15 years ago, in which is spoken of the person who can vanquish the Dark Lord, yadayadayada, who has been marked by the lord himself, yadayadayada, you get it right?'' Harry said with indifference. He wasn't going to tell everything to the Aurors he didn't know.

Apparently, Bones understood this. ''Mr. Potter, I will check this with the department of mysteries. I will get back to you on this.''

Harry rolled his eyes and looked towards Hermione and Draco, who both were looking dead on their feet. Harry cast a quick wandless tempus and saw the Aurors gasp, he tried not to look too smug about it, but he knew they were impressed with the wandless magic. It was almost midnight. They were there a lot longer than he had expected.

''If you all don't mind, I'm going to bed. Mione, Dray, are you coming, loves?'' He knew he was laying it a little thick on things, but he knew they were still upset about being the bait in the next task. ''Sirius, Remus, I will see you tomorrow, right?''

He got nods from all the addressed people and turned back to McGonagall and Bones.

''Madam, Headmistress, I don't think you need me right now. We will talk about the tournament another time when we are a little more awake. Goodnight.''

He led Draco and Hermione out of the office and back towards their dorm. When they got inside the door, he was almost strangled by two sets of arms around him. He hugged them just as tight back.

''Come on, loves, let's go to bed, it was a very long day. Draco, are you feeling okay, babe?''

''Yes, Harry, I feel fine, just tired and still upset about the whole plan and that that bastard got away.''

Hermione groaned, ''I almost forget about that, how the hell could he escape?''

''I don't know, but he must have had help, someone who could have access to the office through floo,'' Harry said while getting ready for bed.

Draco went rigid. He was already thinking about something.

''Like someone of the school board?'' He said with a sneer.

Hermione and Harry stopped with what they were doing. Hermione was thinking about it but nodded and went white.

''Yes, the board has access to the office for emergencies,'' Hermione said weakly.

''You're thinking of Lucius?'' Harry said when he got on the same train of thought.

''Of course, I'm thinking of him. He asshole pops up everywhere.'' Draco said, and he threw his robe across the bedroom.

Harry and Hermione walked to him and put their arms around him. The fight was already leaving his body because of the tiredness.

''Why does everything come back to him?'' Draco asked in a lost voice.

''Because he is a manipulative, racist, male chauvinist pig.'' Hermione huffed, which got a laugh from both her boys.

''Let's go to sleep, I love you both, but I'm tired,'' Harry said while steering them to the bed.

''Love you too, even if you are someone with a need to save everyone complex,'' Hermione said, glaring a little at the dark-haired wizard.

Harry gulped, ''I don't have a complex!'' He heard Draco snort.

''Sure, let's go with that, go to sleep, love,'' Draco said with a smile.

Harry grumbled but got in the bed, he put Draco in the middle for tonight, and within minutes they were gone from their world and into the night.

* * *

''Harry! We need to go to the Quidditch pitch, Mr. Bagman is asking for all the champions.'' Harry turned around from his breakfast to look towards Fleur, who was standing right behind him.

He nodded and kissed Draco and Hermione goodbye before going with Fleur, who also had picked up Cedric in the meantime.

Viktor was waiting outside already with Bagman.

''Ahh, the other champions!'' He exclaimed while clapping. He led them towards the Quidditch pitch, and Cedric, Viktor, and Harry were indignant when they saw the state it was in.

''What happened to the pitch?!'' Harry exclaimed. Bagman just smiled.

''Isn't it wonderful! It's going to be a maze!'' He said; Harry glared at him.

''Please tell me that it will be in the correct order for next year?'' He pleaded with Bagman.

Bagman laughed but nodded, taking a little tension off Harry. He loved Quidditch, so it would be great if he could play it again next year.

''So, the next task is a maze?'' Cedric asked a little incredulously.

''Yes! Isn't it amazing!'' The man was beaming at them, but all the champions weren't really impressed.

''What is going to happen in the maze?'' Harry asked warily.

''Ah! That's for me to know and for you to dot dot dot.'' Bagman said, still beaming. Harry wanted to punch him, but he restrained himself. No one was looking amused except Bagman.

''So can we go now? It seems that we just needed to know this, right?'' Harry said, and Bagman deflated at his words. Harry felt a little smug but still wanted to hit the man.

''Yes, you can go; we just didn't want to spring anything on you, so everything is clear. Is that okay?'' Bagman said while looking unsure and to Harry. Harry smirked. The man was genuinely afraid that Harry would do something with his title.

Harry got back to the castle but was interrupted by Cedric. He flushed a little when he saw Cedric smile at him. _Bloody handsome bastard._

''How are you, Harry?'' Cedric asked, genuinely interested.

''I'm good, training for the task, how are you? Are you also training?''

''Yes, but I just wanted to thank you again for all your help. Because of you, I knew of the first task with Dragons, and because of you, nobody got kidnapped for the second task. That means a lot to me, so thank you.''

Harry flushed again because of the praise.

''Your welcome. According to Hermione, I have a people saving complex. So probably because of that is why I tried to help.'' Harry said, while rolling his eyes.

Cedric laughed at that. ''I can see that she thinks you have a complex, but I think it's just who you are. You are just really nice to everyone.''

Harry guffawed, ''I - am - really - not nice - to everyone. Just the people I like.'' He said, between catching his breath and laughing.

Cedric chuckled a little, and they had stopped walking. _When had they stopped walking?_ Harry thought to himself.

Cedric turned towards Harry, and Harry's heart skipped a beat. This wasn't the position he wanted to be in. Cedric reached out his hand and tucked a strand of hair behind Harry's ear. Harry saw Cedric leaning in and had enough.

He pushed Cedric away, not too hard but enough, so the guy took the hint.

''Cedric, I have a boyfriend and girlfriend; I'm like the most taken person in this school. And I like you but just as a friend.''

Cedric nodded but didn't look at Harry. He seemed ashamed of himself. Harry put his hand on Cedric's arm, and the older boy finally looked him in the eyes.

''I understand, you are just really nice towards everyone I know, you helped Cho, you are hot, and you have confidence. You're just great.'' Cedric said while flailing his arms a little. Harry chuckled.

''I really am not great, I just do what I think is right, to much chagrin of Draco and Hermione I can tell you. You will find someone else who is perfect for you. Draco and Hermione are that for me.''

Cedric nodded, and with an awkward little goodbye, they parted ways, and Harry got back to his dorm.

When he walked into the room, he saw Hermione and Draco on the couch in the middle of a heated make-out session. Harry's breath hitched when he saw them. His two loves kissing like that always did something to him.

He sent his view through the bond to them and heard them groan.

''Fuck Harry, join us,'' Draco said when he looked up to Harry with a hungry gleam in his eyes.

''Let's take it to bed. The couch is too small for my taste.'' He responded after kneeling next to them and kissing them both.

All three of them got up and tumbled on the bed. Soon all of the clothes were gone, and they were panting together.

Until now, they had mostly used their hands, not wanting to tempt themselves to do more, only the one time in Greece they did more and only to Hermione, but Harry couldn't wait anymore, he really wanted to do more.

He needed to taste Draco and Hermione.

He kissed down Draco's chest and was already stroking Draco a little. Draco was distracted by Hermione, who was kissing him like he was the breath she needed underwater.

When he got by Draco's crotch, he placed a soft kiss at the base of Draco's length. He heard Draco moan and move his hips a little. Draco was already completely hard. Harry licked from the base to the tip of Draco's cock, and the blonde wizard gasped. Harry smirked and looked up.

He met Draco's lustful eyes; Hermione was also looking with hunger like she was also ready to taste them.

While still looking at them, he put the tip of Draco in his mouth. Draco moaned and threw his head back at the cushion. Hermione was kissing Draco's neck and placing a mark on it.

Harry groaned when he tasted the pre-cum from Draco, completely turned on by the taste and the sounds Draco made. He slowly put the length further in his mouth. When his mouth was adjusted to the shape, he started to pick up the pace.

He was licking and kissing along the length and put it entirely in his mouth. He didn't know before this that he didn't have a gag reflex, but he enjoyed it now, and by the sounds coming from Draco, he enjoyed it too.

''Harry, stop, no wait, don't stop. Ahgh, Salazar.'' Draco moaned.

Harry looked up and saw that Draco guided Hermione to get closer and sit on his face to lick her. Harry moaned, and the sound went straight through Draco.

When Hermione sat, she was looking at Harry and moaned at sight in front of her. Draco licked at the sensitive spot, and she let out a gasp. Harry was watching them while bobbing his head on Draco's cock.

Hermione closed her eyes for a moment to feel through the bond and send her pleasure through it. Both boys moaned, and Hermione joined.

''I -, Harry, you need - stop - I'm gonna-'' Draco gasped after a couple of minutes. Harry put his hand on Draco's base and pulled his mouth off with a pop.

''Come for me, Draco, don't hold back.'' He put his mouth back and got back to his administrations.

Draco moaned, and Harry felt Draco's cock tense before he spilled in his mouth. Harry groaned at the taste and quickly swallowed, not wanting to spill anything.

Hermione tensed and moaned, feeling the climax through the bond, and it send her over the edge too. ''O Merlin!'' She exclaimed.

Draco kept licking her until it was too tender, and she got off and fell next to him on the bed. She looked to Harry, who was leisurely stroking himself. Not yet finished but completely turned on.

Hermione crawled to him and pushed him against the mattress with a thorough kiss. She tasted Draco on his tongue, and she mewled at the taste. Harry swallowed her sounds but let out a gasp when he felt Hermione's hand on his cock.

Draco was looking at them with hooded eyes before crawling over and kissing Harry's base. Hermione pulled her hand back and also started kissing Harry's length.

Harry moaned at the feeling of the mouths of his loves on him.

''I'm not going to last.'' He gasped. He felt Draco smirk before he felt a tongue lick him. Harry closed his eyes and gave himself over to the feeling.

Within minutes he was a moaning mess. Hermione put his cock in her mouth, and he started bucking his hips. He felt Draco put his hands on his hips so he wouldn't buck too wild into Hermione's mouth.

Harry looked down and saw Draco put his hand in Hermione's hair and pushing her a little down in interval. Hermione and Harry both moaned.

''Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, I'm going to-'' He couldn't finish his sentence before he was already falling over the edge.

Hermione took it in stride and swallowed everything. When she pulled her mouth off, you could hear a little 'pop.'

They all fell on the bed and just barely managed to get under the blankets. Harry kissed Hermione and tasted himself on her before turning to Draco and kissing him also.

They murmured I love you's before falling into a very deep sleep.

* * *

''Master, I really tried, I-''

''Silence!''

''But, Master, if it wasn't because of their bond I-''

''I said silence! What do you not understand, Crouch? You failed. You needed to break their bond by killing one of them. You failed and got caught. Lucius needed to get you out. If it weren't for him, you would have gotten the kiss. And I'm not done with you.''

''Yes, Master, of course, Master, I understand, I will do anything for you!''

''Yes, I know, now, get over here. I need to curse you as punishment.''

Crouch whimpered but crawled towards the spot in front of the chair. The voice chuckled and started to cough. When the coughing fit was over, you could hear a rasping breath.

''CRUCIO!''

Harry gasped awake and patted himself down to make sure he was okay. He felt Draco and Hermione stir next to him and waking.

''Are you okay, Harry?'' Draco asked his boyfriend. Harry nodded, not trusting his voice yet.

''We know your lying love; what happened?'' Hermione asked.

Harry looked at his soulmates and sighed.

''Voldemort. Voldemort happened. We need to do something before he completely gets back.''


	24. Chapter 24

_Run, run, run, run, run, run._

Those words echo in Harry's head. He hears laughing behind him but doesn't stop to look.

''Icky little Harrykinss! Come out, come out where ever you areeee!'' He hears a sickly voice sing behind him. He ducks behind a headstone when he sees a red spell pass him.

_Try to breathe, breathe, dammit!_

''Potter! Come face me! Bella, step back, he's mine!'' Harry almost stops breathing. They clearly know where he is. How fucked up is this. His arm still throbs from the slicing they did to get the blood. He mutters a light healing spell and is relieved when it works.

_Mione and Draco are going to kill me if I'm going to face him._ He looks at his arm and almost starts to sob when he sees the lash marks from the bracelet that was ripped off. It was his failsafe, he could return to his Draco and Hermione with it, but he didn't stand a chance without it.

_Draco, Hermione, mom, dad, Sirius, Remus, Ginny, Theo, Blaise, Pansy, George and Fred, I'm sorry. If I could fight more and break out of this, I would. God, I would. But I don't stand a chance against Voldemort by myself without a wand... And it wouldn't work either way, not with the Horcruxes still active._

''Are you finished praying Potter? It would not work; either way, you're going to die.'' Voldemort snarls behind him, getting closer with the second. Harry can hear the laughs of the Death Eaters and the horrible shriek of Bellatrix, what a godawful woman is that!

Harry closes his eyes and blows out a breath steeling himself. When he wants to get up to face his doom, he feels a comforting feeling in his hand. He opens his eyes and looks down. A white wand with knots lays in it.

Harry feels the warmth coming from it, a calming feeling, and he knows. He's not alone, and Hermione and Draco are waiting for him.

He stands and flicks his wrist with the new wand. Immediately a weight settles on his shoulders, and he looks down. He sees his familiar invisibility cloak. A smirk appears on his lips, and he looks up to face Voldemort. He will not die tonight. Hell, Voldemort will not die tonight. Not as long as the Horcruxes are there, but Harry will give Voldemort everything he's got.

He turns and sees the Death Eaters approaching with Voldemort in the lead. When Voldemort sees him, he falters for a moment, looking at the cloak around his shoulders and the wand in his hand.

''How did you get those?!'' Voldemort snarls.

''Does it matter?'' Harry responds.

''No, Potter, you're going to die anyway,'' Voldemort says with a smirk on his snakelike lips.

''Let's find out if death **wants** to claim me,'' Harry says before firing the first spell.

* * *

**3 hours earlier.**

''Harry! Are you nervouz? I'm trembling a little, see my hands!'' Fleur exclaims when she finds Harry at the dining table.

It's the night of the third task. Harry almost can't eat from the nerves, so he definitely understands.

''Just a little, are you ready for the maze?'' Harry responds, trying and probably failing to hide his trembling hands. When his hands are under the table, he feels Draco and Hermione wrapping their own hands over his.

He smiles at both of them. They're sitting in the Great Hall, waiting for the last task that will start in a couple of hours.

''Eat something, Harry, you need your strength,'' Draco whispers next to him. Harry nods and tries to eat something, but his stomach is cramping a little, and he just knows that he doesn't want to eat anymore because otherwise, he's going to be sick.

''I feel like I'm ready, but I don't know before I enter, do I?'' Fleur teases before she looks to the Great Hall entrance to look at the sea of redheads enter.

George, Fred, and Ginny are leading Arthur, Molly, Bill, and Charlie towards the Gryffindor table where Harry, Hermione, and Draco are sitting.

Fleur blushes when she sees Bill, and his gaze lands on her. They look at each other, and Harry smirks and scrapes his throat.

''Guys! So good to see you! I'm so grateful that you want to support me today! May I introduce you to miss Fleur Delacour? Fleur, this is a huge part of the Weasley clan, my second family. That is Mr. Arthur Weasley, next to him, Mrs. Molly Weasley, then you already know George, Fred, and Ginny, next to them is Charlie, and this is Bill!'' He introduces everybody, and of course, he introduces Bill last because he is a little shit.

He can hear Hermione giggle next to him, obviously picking up on what Harry was doing. Draco was grinning on the other side, and Fleur had little red spots on her cheeks before Bill steps forward and takes her hand to kiss her knuckles.

Molly pulls Harry in a tight motherly hug, and Harry let go of his nerves for a moment to just revel in it.

Sirius and Remus join them, and all their friends also join them. Harry thanks them in his head that they don't start about the tournament because he just doesn't want to talk about it right now.

Harry feels complete for about an hour, with all his friends and family with him. But he still feels a little off and nervous.

He knows that the DMLE has everything covered at the maze. At least 30 Aurors are at Hogwarts, on the pitch, or on the grounds guarding everything they can see. He feels safe but also has a nasty feeling in his stomach.

''Harry, you are spacing out a little. Are you okay? Do you want to go back to our dorm for a bit?'' Hermione asks softly. Harry is immensely grateful for Hermione and her keen eye that he doesn't feel fine at the moment.

He nods, and Hermione also asks Draco if he will come with them. They say their goodbyes to their friends and family and are within their dorm in a couple of minutes.

When he's in the dorm, he collapses on the couch. Jared slithers from his cage and towards him and drops himself on Harry's neck.

Jared relaxes Harry a little bit by just talking to him. Hermione and Draco, who are used to this, just snuggle up on Harry's sides and listen to the hissing sound Harry makes with Jared.

When Harry feels like he will not dissolve in a puddle of nerves, he goes to change before they need to leave for the stadium.

There is a knock on the door, and Draco opens it. He narrows his eyes when he sees it's Cedric. Cedric looks a little nervous and scratches his neck a little.

''Hi, I was thinking of walking to the stadium together. If you don't mind?'' He asks Harry.

''Sure, we just wanted to leave to it, so you're just in time,'' Harry replies.

''Great! Are you ready, then?''

''Yes, I think so. I have my wand and can't take anything other with me.'' Harry says while checking his wand holster on his pols.

''You are still wearing you're bracelet, right Harry?'' Hermione says, sounding a little nervous.

''Yes, Mione, I never take it off. I know what it means to you.'' He says while smiling fondly.

Cedric looks at Harry's wrist. ''What kind of bracelet is it?''

The three of them freeze and look at each other. It's not that they don't want to tell anyone, but nobody knows about it because it isn't exactly legal.

''Well, uhm.'' Harry stumbles before Hermione rolls her eyes.

''It's a failsafe, it's an emergency portkey, so if any of us is in trouble, they activate it with the right words, and the other two get transported to the one that is in trouble, this is so we can help each other,'' Hermione said, sounding a little nervous.

Cedric's eyes bulge out of his head. That is amazing magic if it's homemade.

''Amazing! Did you do this?'' He asks Hermione, who blushes a little but is nodding. Draco grumbles a bit under his breath, but Harry and Hermione couldn't understand him.

Hermione pulls a little at Draco's sleeve to walk a little behind Cedric and Harry, who are talking.

''Draco, why do you feel so jealous? You know he's gay, and Harry has rejected him because you're the only guy he needs.'' Hermione tells him.

''And wants!'' Harry says over his shoulder.

Draco smiles and kisses Hermione on her cheek while taking her hand and walking further towards the castle's exit.

The entrance hall is full of people, Harry can see Sirius and Remus talking with McGonagall, and they are walking towards Harry, probably to wish him luck just before the task.

Harry and Cedric are laughing and don't see the man in dark clothing approaching. It was half an hour before the third task would begin. Before anyone could react, the man in dark clothing reached Harry and Cedric and pushed something against Harry's sternum.

Cedric tries to reach Harry but was too late. He only could grab the bracelet from Harry, but the thing that is pushed against Harry is activated, and the man and Harry are whisked away.

Cedric looks horrified at stares at his hands. The bracelet is in pieces in his hands. Harry is gone.

* * *

Chaos, you just wanted to call it chaos. After Harry was kidnapped, everyone started to scream that saw it happen.

''Harry! Harry! Where did he go!?'' Hermione started while grabbing Draco's arm. Draco pulled her in a tight hug and looked around to check for threats.

Sirius and Remus ran towards them as soon as they saw what was happening, but they were also too late to do something to prevent it.

''I'm so sorry! I tried to stop him! I tried to reach Harry in time, but I only got his bracelet. How stupid! With it, you could call him back with the portkey!'' Cedric cried. He was feeling sick that it was his fault they couldn't get Harry back.

Draco turned around and looked at Cedric. He saw how wrecked he was and that he felt like it was his fault.

''You couldn't do anything, Cedric. If you reached Harry in time and had made contact with him, you would have been taken with him, and we don't know in what kind of situation you would have landed. We are glad you are okay. Now we just need to find the bastard that took him.'' Draco finished.

Sirius pulled Hermione and Draco in a hug, trying to keep it together. He saw his pup been taken away and was on the line of breaking down. They knew that it had to be Death Eaters.

''Call the Aurors. They need to know Harry has been taken,'' Remus says to McGonagall, who looked shocked at what just happened. She nods and hurries away to the grounds.

They look around and see that a lot of people are running around and panicking. If Hogwarts isn't safe for the boy who lived, who is it safe for?

The story travels fast, and the jury comes hurrying in with McGonagall and a lot of Aurors.

''This is disastrous, Minerva! The tournament needs to be canceled again. The last time someone died, and now someone, no not someone, the lead Champion in the tournament, the boy who lived is kidnapped! How could this happen?!'' Ludo Bagman shrieked.

''Death Eaters happened, Bagman, the followers of Voldemort took my godson!'' Sirius screamed. Ludo Bagman paled.

''He's dead! Why would they take him?''

''Because he can come back! Do you even know what the name Voldemort means? It means "flight of death" the man was smart and did everything he could to get eternal life. He isn't dead, not completely, he will be back, and he wanted Harry and now got him!'' Sirius bellowed. Everyone in the entrance hall stilled before running away in panic.

Seriously, how stupid were people that they started to run around?

McGonagall put her wand against her throat before spelling her voice to boom over the noise.

''Everyone stay calm! Students back to your dorm. Parents and spectators for the tournament, please leave in an orderly way. If you're outside the gate, you can apparate. Please go home at this moment.''

The students hugged their parents and said goodbye before all the parents left.

The Aurors started to interview Sirius, Remus, Cedric, Draco, and Hermione, who had the best view of what had happened.

Hermione was still in Draco's arms, and there were tear tracks on her face. Hermione looked up from Draco's shoulder and looked like she had an epiphany.

''DOBBY!'' She shrieked. Draco was rubbing his ear but didn't complain. He knew that Hermione was terrified of what was happening with Harry.

They heard a pop before they heard a wailing Dobby.

''Sir, Miss, Mister Harry is gone, he's taken, Sir and Miss!'' Dobby said while crying and gripping Draco's leg.

Draco, who already had a crying girlfriend on his shoulder, really could do without a crying elf on his pants.

''We know Dobby, we know, we are thinking of a way to get him back,'' Draco said while rubbing the elves head to calm him.

''That's why I called you Dobby! Can you locate Harry?'' Hermione asked. Draco's eyes bulged out. _Why didn't I think of that!? Wait, Hermione is brilliant, probably because of that._

''I tried missus, but Mister Harry is somewhere I cannot go. The 'pop' doesn't work there.'' He said, and started crying again.

Hermione's smile faded. This was her hope to get Harry back.

''Dobby, can you tell us where it is or take us near there, like a mile away?'' Draco added, trying to stay positive.

Dobby looked like he was thinking before he started to nod. ''I can take you there!'' He exclaimed.

''Great, take us there!'' Draco said while gripping Hermione's hand, who was beaming at him for thinking of that loophole.

''WAIT!'' Sirius screamed, just before they wanted to disappear.

''You are not going without us; you have no idea where you're walking into, and how dangerous it is.'' He said on a more reasonable level.

''We can't leave him, dad! We need to help him!''

''Of course, we aren't going to leave him, but we need to think about it before we're running after him.''

''You learned from your mistakes, Black? Who would know that a couple of years in Azkaban could help with that.''

Draco turned around and saw his godfather Snape walking towards them. Sirius snarled at Snape, but he didn't seemed fazed.

''I don't care about your little pissing fight. I just want Harry back. We need to help him.''

At that moment, Hermione and Draco fell to the ground from the agony they felt through their bond with Harry. They screamed out from the pain. It seemed like a thousand needles were inserted in their heads. It was way worse than a simple Crucio. They could still stand after that through the bond they shared.

Everybody around them started to panic and tried to help them, but they couldn't be helped because the pain was from the bond.

After a couple of moments, they stilled on the floor, panting and sweating from the extension. The pain had lifted for the moment, but time was running out.

The Aurors who were stationed on the grounds were now all inside with Madam Bones in the lead—looking ready for a fight.

Draco sat up when Sirius kept hovering around them. He turned to Hermione and pulled her in a hug. She sniffed a moment before steadying herself. She wasn't going to fall apart. She was going to help Harry and get him home.

Draco smiled at her when they pulled apart.

''Ready love? We need to go.'' He asked her softly. She nodded, and they stood up to get to Harry.

The Aurors, Sirius, and Remus were ready and were waiting for Dobby to take them to where Harry was. They already got a plan to keep out of sight as long as possible before stunning all the Death Eaters and rescuing Harry.

''I'm ready,'' She responded. Nobody was asking them to stay back because they were still minors. Nobody was making a fuzz. They knew it would be pointless, and they would lose valuable time.

''Let's get him back.''

* * *

Harry was stunned the moment his feet made contact with the ground. He tried to struggle but couldn't move because of the spell that was cast on him.

He looked around and saw the man in black that had taken him and snarled.

''What do you want, you bastard!?''

''Well, well, mister Potter, you would assume that being with my son would have taught you a few manners, but alas, your still a filthy half-blood.'' The voice drawled back. Harry froze, Lucius - freaking - Malfoy.

''You don't deserve to call him your son. He's better than you ever will be.'' Harry snapped back.

He cried out when he felt a stinging hex shot at his leg. He panted and looked up to see that Lucius had drawn the hood back from the black robes.

''That wasn't very nice, and you say something about my manners. How come you're out of prison? Because if I recall correctly, you were punched by my godfather at the Quidditch cup, and that sound of your nose cracking was lovely, by the way.'' Harry said with a vicious smirk on his face.

Lucius snarled but didn't respond because another figure was walking towards them, humping a little.

Crouch came into the clearing and was carrying something. Harry couldn't identify what it was. But it couldn't be good.

''Bind him to the headstone, Lucius.'' Harry heard the bundle speak and was startled that he recognized the voice. He heard that one in his dreams about Voldemort.

He suppressed a gasp. He was lifted in the air by magic. Lucius lifted him and bound him to a headstone with the name riddle on it.

''So, we're here for your family reunion?'' Harry said as calmly as he could muster.

Lucius stilled and looked back to the bundle but didn't make any comment.

''Lucius, check the perimeter. The ritual doesn't require you.'' The bundle, Voldemort, spoke.

''But, my lord, I-''

''It doesn't require you. Go.''

''Of course, my lord, I will be back as soon as you need me.''

The bundle started to cough, and Harry wished it would die from the lack of oxygen. But, it was his life, and of course, it wouldn't do as he wanted.

''Crouch, start the ritual.'' The bundle said with a raspy voice.

Crouch nodded and walked to the huge cauldron that was on a fire in front of Harry. He then dumped the bundle in the cauldron and started to recite something before turning and walking back to where Harry was bound.

_Please drown, please drown, please drown!_ Harry thought in his mind.

''Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son,'' Crouch said while pulling out his wand and splitting the earth beneath Harry's feet to dig up a bone. He then put the bone in the cauldron and fuddled with his robes to expose his arm.

''Flesh of the servant, willingly given, you will revive your master.'' Harry felt his stomach turn when he saw that Crouch cut off his hand without any objection. The hand vanished in the cauldron. Crouch put a bandage around his wrist with his wand and turned to Harry with a manic grin.

''Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe.'' Harry paled at the mention of blood forcibly taken. He tried to struggle, but his bounds were still in place, and he couldn't move.

He held back a scream when Crouch sliced open his robes on his right arm and dragged it playfully over his skin. Harry felt sick that the bastard was playing with him, but he didn't expect otherwise from a follower of a madman.

Crouch sliced his arm open with a lot of pressure, and Harry cried out of the pain. He tried to be silent, but he couldn't.

If the grin that was on Crouch's face was an indication, he reveled in the noise. Crouch walked back to the cauldron and let the drops of blood fall in it.

The potion began to bubble, and smoke was coming from it. Harry held his breath while Crouch was smiling like a crazy person and knelt in front of the cauldron.

Harry saw something rise from the cauldron and gasped. A white form emerged, and it looked sick. Skin and bones and sickly white. The form was still with his back to Harry. Crouch quickly got something off the floor and handed it to the figure with a deep bow.

It appeared to be robes when the figure dressed himself in it. Then he held out his hand to Crouch, and Crouch gave him a wand.

''Harry Potter, at last. The last time I saw you, you were merely a babe.'' The figure said while turning to look at Harry. Harre pressed his teeth together when he saw the empty red eyes that turned to him and sneered.

''But, you still died. I wonder how it will be when it's a fair fight.''

Voldemort chuckled.

''Let's not get ahead of ourselves, Harry. First, I want you to see my loyal followers. After well, I will make you feel what you did to me.''

Harry tried not to gulp in fear and just glared at Voldemort. Crouch put out his arm that didn't lose its hand, and Voldemort gripped it and put his wand against the Dark Mark that was tattooed on the skin.

Lucius came back instantly and kneeled in front of Voldemort and kissed his hand. Harry was disgusted by the simple play of submission. If Lucius truly knew who Voldemort was, he probably didn't want to touch him with a five-foot pole.

''Master, you have returned!'' Lucius exclaimed while more and more people appeared in a circle around the cauldron.

All the people started to kneel for Voldemort. Harry still couldn't move and was now terrified of what would happen to him.

''My followers. How nice of you to join us. I want to show my gratitude. If you had earned it. The only ones that came looking for me and helped me come back are Crouch and Lucius Malfoy. Of course, the ones in Azkaban don't count because they couldn't help, but fortunately, Lucius has helped some of them out. Please welcome the Lestranges back from Azkaban.''

Harry hadn't heard of another break out from Azkaban but gasped when he saw a pale, crazy looking woman step forward and fell on her knees in front of Voldemort only to kiss his feet. It was repulsive that somebody would stoop that low.

''Master, my lord, thank you for freeing us. I will do anything you ask of me.'' The woman looked up and stared at Harry.

''Do you want me to kill him? I can do it right now, my lord. Please let me prove myself!'' She started shrieking.

Harry flinched but still couldn't move.

''No, no, Bella, he's mine to kill as was spoken by the Prophecy,'' Voldemort said calmly while patting the head of the woman as if she were a dog.

Harry tried to struggle but still couldn't move from his bounds. He let out a little indignant noise while tuning the conversation out that Voldemort had with his followers.

Harry tried to free his arm with his wand holder and his wand. But when he checked if Voldemort was paying attention, he saw that everybody was looking at him, and his hope plummeted.

''Harry, it's time. Time to die. But first, I want to show you that the trick you had in your first year will not work anymore.'' Voldemort said while strolling over to Harry.

Harry looked in fascination when Voldemort put his finger against Harry's head until he screamed from the pain he felt. It was agony like he was in a fire that burned everything away from the inside out. He gasped for air when Voldemort released him.

''What was that?'' Harry choked out.

''That was a taste of what you are going to feel tonight. Crouch release his bonds. I want to give him the image of hope.''

Crouch did as was asked, and Harry fell to the ground. He felt dizzy from the wound on his arm, the pain he just felt, and the blood loss.

''Get up! I imagine you know the proper rules of dueling?'' Voldemort asked.

Harry gritted his teeth and nodded.

''Excellent. Let's begin. First, we bow.'' Voldemort bowed, and Harry did the same. He wasn't a complete savage to not do it, even if he was in pain and terrified.

''And now, we begin! CRUCIO!'' Voldemort bellowed, but Harry sprang to the side and sent a silent bombarda to Voldemort.

Voldemort was blasted back and got to his feet instantly. All the Death Eaters looked with wide eyes at what just happened. It was impressive to use non-verbally spells this effective.

Voldemort sneered. He wasn't expecting that the brat could fight back. He sent a non-verbal cutting curse in retaliation, but the boy spun and evaded the curse again. He was getting angrier with the minute.

''CRUCIO!'' This time, Harry was just a second too late and landed on the floor, gasping for breath before standing up again.

''How is this possible! How can you withstand the Crucio curse!?'' Voldemort snarled.

''Well, for starters, I'm not helpless, I'm younger than you, and you were almost dead half an hour ago. How could it possibly be.'' Harry said with a sarcastic drawl.

Voldemort seemed to growl, literally, but Harry had put on an impassive mask. As if he wasn't afraid of what was happening.

Voldemort started shooting hexes and curses as soon as possible, and Harry tried to block them as much as possible.

''AVADA KEDAVRA!'' Voldemort bellowed after five minutes of not getting a hit on the boy.

Harry ducked, but just a second too late, the curse hit his wand, and it chattered in a hundred pieces.

''Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.'' Harry started chanting, and before he could really think about it, he turned and started to run.


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a little reminder of where we were in the story!
> 
> \----
> 
> He turns and sees the Death Eaters approaching with Voldemort in the lead. When Voldemort sees him, he falters for a moment, looking at the cloak around his shoulders and the wand in his hand.
> 
> ''How did you get those?!'' Voldemort snarls.
> 
> ''Does it matter?'' Harry responds.
> 
> ''No, Potter, you're going to die anyway,'' Voldemort says with a smirk on his snakelike lips.
> 
> ''Let's find out if death wants to claim me,'' Harry says before firing the first spell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update! I had already written the first part, and then I got stuck. So I completely rewrite the first part, and I hope that you will like it!

Draco and Hermione landed a mile away from a graveyard in Little Hangleton. They looked around and waited until everyone was in positions.

The Aurors would make the first lines before Sirius, Remus, Draco, and Hermione would join in the fight. They didn't know how many Death Eaters would be with Voldemort, and they knew that Voldemort was powerful. They needed to be careful.

After silent communication, the group started heading towards the graveyard. They saw the sky light up with different colors above the graveyard and knew that spells were being fired.

Draco looked at Hermione and saw the terrified expression on her face and the fierce determination to help Harry. He squeezed her hand a little for comfort, and she gave a small smile as thanks.

They could hear the shouts and taunts now. The Aurors in front of them were as silent as possible to make sure everybody could get out as soon as possible.

''Potter! Tell me how you got that wand! I saw your wand just got blasted to pieces. How did you get that wand!?'' Voldemort snarled.

They could see him duck a spell before he would be hit. Harry was fighting back with everything he had.

Draco was confused; what did Voldemort mean that Harry's lost his wand? Which wand did he have? And why sounded Voldemort so apprehensive? Draco could see the Death Eaters now, and they seemed to be standing in a circle around Voldemort and Harry. Harry and Voldemort were circling each other.

''I don't know Tom, I don't know why the wand appeared to me, but apparently, you have some idea what this could mean. Otherwise, you wouldn't sound like your afraid of a fourteen-year-old boy.'' Harry taunted. He had a smirk on his lips, but Draco could see the exhaustion behind his stance.

He could see that Sirius was struggling to stay put and not burst into the clearing to help Harry. Remus had a hand on his shoulder to keep him grounded, but even the level headed werewolf was struggling to not run to his pup.

Relief flooded Draco with the sound of Harry's voice. He had been hurt. That was obvious, but he was still alive, and they could help him. Draco squeezed Hermione's hand and sent a message through the bond to her that he would send Harry a message through the bond. But they needed Voldemort distracted.

They got the chance almost immediately when Harry sent a volley of spells towards Voldemort, and a couple of Death Eaters needed to jump out of the way. The Aurors took the advantage and silently stunned the Death Eaters, who were just outside the ranks. Making sure nobody could hear them. Voldemort was also distracted with defensive spells, and Draco took his chance to send a mental message to Harry.

_''We're here, love, just hold on for a few moments so we can weed out a couple of the Death Eaters.''_

Draco saw the look of hope pass Harry's face before he changed it to impassive to face Voldemort again. They saw Harry forming a plan in its mind to distract Voldemort enough to get out of here. It was amazing how Harry was facing him and not shaking in fear like the Death Eaters, and Aurors was. Even Draco didn't feel completely steady at the moment. He could feel the power roll of the pair of wizards. It was an eerie feeling.

Draco didn't recognize the wand Harry was holding, and he also saw Harry's invisibility cloak around his shoulders, and Draco frowned. He couldn't recall that Harry had the cloak on him when he was taken.

Draco looked at Hermione and saw her also frowning at the sight of Harry with the cloak. She looked at Draco and shrugged a little. They would get the story later. Other things were more important. Like getting out here alive.

''Let me say, Tom, I expected more of you, with all your safety nets, all that old magic, I thought you would have thought about everything.'' Harry mocked.

Voldemort had a sneer on his face and sent a flurry of spells to Harry. ''I had thought about everything, but how you have the Elder wand is beyond me.''

Harry ducked and dodged a statue that Voldemort had brought to life. He blew up the statue and dispersed the snakes that were coming at him.

They saw Harry frown, and Draco was thinking really hard. He had heard the name Elder wand before but couldn't exactly recall where.

''Elder wand?'' Draco heard Harry ask Harry clearly didn't know either anything about the wand. It was dangerous not to use your own wand, but it seemed like this wand was an extension of Harry's arm. It fitted perfectly and responded flawlessly.

At that moment, some of the Death Eaters spotted the Aurors and started to duel and shout. Voldemort saw what was happening and blocked six Aurors with one spell. The Aurors fell from the blast they got. They didn't get up again.

Harry let out a shout of outrage when he saw the Aurors fell, they were here for him, to save him, and now they were gone. Their families will not see them again. Harry felt responsible and attacked Voldemort viciously. They dueled again for a couple of moments before Voldemort had enough.

''Thank you for your assistance, Potter. But alas, it's getting too crowded here for me. We will meet again.'' Voldemort snarled before sending the last blasting curse to a headstone near Harry and disapparating. Harry ducked out of the way before the debris could hit him.

The standing Death Eaters started to disapparate too, and the only reminders of the battle were the men and women lying on the floor. The six Aurors were, fortunately, the only ones that were dead. It could have gone a lot worse, but Draco was glad it was over. He had dueled with a Death Eater and had fallen down before the Death Eater disapparated out of fear when his master was gone.

Harry fell on his knees, exhausted and worn out, feeling guilty for the lives that were lost tonight. He didn't want to see the disappointed faces of the other Aurors that Voldemort wasn't dead yet and that they lost six of their own.

Hermione pulled Draco to his feet, and together they ran to Harry and threw their arms around him. They used the bond to calm each other and check if no one was hurt. Hermione had the least injuries and helped the boys to heal with her magic.

''That was a little anti-climatic,'' Harry murmured. Draco rolled his eyes fondly, to relieved to say anything. Hermione huffed but also didn't say anything. She just wanted that Harry and Draco were okay and then sleep for a week.

After half an hour, the Aurors were almost all gone. They had rounded a couple of Death Eaters, but not many. The others had removed the wounded and dead and brought them to St. Mungos. Harry refused to go to the hospital, declaring that it wasn't the worst he had suffered from. The pitying looks he got from the people around him were ignored.

Sirius and Remus were hovering near the Triad and were refusing to leave them. Sirius had almost strangled Harry because he couldn't believe that he was dueling Voldemort alone.

''Padfoot, how would you have wanted it to go? Who could have helped me? I didn't even know you all were coming. How did you know where I was?'' Harry said.

''Dobby, Hermione, the brightest witch of her age came with the idea of course. Dobby couldn't transport us to the cemetery, but he could 'pop' us a mile away. That's why we attacked from that side.'' Sirius explained. Hermione ducked her head when she flushed.

Harry was having none of that and hugged her close and kissed her on her head.

''Really Hermione, without you, I would have died twenty times already, and I'm not even exaggerating,'' Harry said, with a fond smile on his lips.

''Harry, you do understand that I'm too stubborn to let you leave us,'' Hermione responded with a smile and indicating between herself and Draco.

They heard an apparation crack, but they had heard a lot of them the last half hour, so it wasn't until Draco looked up and gulped that they saw an angered Dumbledore walk to them.

Sirius and Remus were in a defensive stance within a couple of seconds. If Dumbledore let show how angry he was, it wasn't good news.

''What have you done, boy?!'' Dumbledore bellowed.

Sirius, Remus, Draco, Hermione, and Harry all looked at Dumbledore as if he had grown a second head.

''What do you mean? I just went up against Voldemort. What do you think I have done?'' Harry snapped back. Clearly already pissed at the man.

Harry was tired, overwhelmed, hurt, and grumpy. He just wanted to go home and go to bed. Dumbledore blanched a little at that but didn't relent.

''You took my wand!'' Dumbledore bellowed again. He was getting a little red in the face of rage, and Draco wasn't scared exactly, but really didn't want to be in the near proximity when Dumbledore exploded.

''I did not.'' Harry retorted, with a little petulantly voice.

''Why are you holding it then?'' Dumbledore screamed, his face getting redder and redder.

Harry looked to the wand in his hand and shrugged. Draco resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He loves Harry, but he could be a little shit when he wanted to be.

''It appeared to me,'' Harry said with a little smirk on his lips.

''You have no right!''

''Apparently, I have. So what's the Elder wand?''

Dumbledore almost seems to growl at Harry's behavior. He seemed a little uncertain when Harry asked about the Elder wand but still pushed forward.

''Give. It. Back.'' Dumbledore snarled. Draco could see that Dumbledore was losing it slowly. If they didn't were careful, he would attack.

Sirius and Remus already had their wands drawn and pointed at the older man. Draco took a step forward to block Harry from view. Harry made a little disgruntled noise but didn't stop him.

''If it appeared to him, it's his. You know enough about wand lore that the wand chooses its master. If the wand appeared to Harry, it's his. '' Draco said with as much disdain as possible.

Dumbledore looked like he was trembling with rage. He took a deep breath, and everybody could see that he was visibly calming himself to speak. Draco counted to ten and had a little smirk on his face when he saw that Dumbledore was doing the same.

''You have no idea what you have done. You will go dark, Harry, the last one to hold that wand was Grindewald.'' Dumbledore explained with as much calm he could muster, but failing miserably when they say him shaking a little.

''That's not true, because if I recall correctly, it was your wand, that's why you are having a fit about it.'' Harry retorted.

Dumbledore growled and looked ready to jump on Harry to take the wand with force. ''It was mine. You have not deserved it!''

Sirius cleared his throat and smiled smugly at the older wizard but not putting his wand away.

''Dumbles, if I recall the tale about the Elder wand correctly, the Elder wand belongs to the one that defeated the last owner, and my dear godson told me himself that he expelliarmused your ass. So that would mean it belongs to him.''

Remus snorted and had a fond smile on his lips. Dumbledore was getting paler now. He hadn't thought of that incident. That was clear to the whole group.

Harry grumbled, ''I still don't know why the wand appeared to me, or what the Elder wand is exactly.''

''I will explain later, pup,'' Sirius said with a wink.

Dumbledore was looking disgruntled and a little defeated, but still ready to fight. Draco couldn't see a wand on him, but he could have hidden it in his robe.

At that moment, Madam Bones came behind Dumbledore and put him in anti-magic cuffs.

''You are hereby arrested, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. When I arrested you the last time, I already told you on which grounds, so I will not repeat myself.'' She said while gesturing to two Aurors to take the old goat.

Dumbledore started to scream protests but was silenced with a charm from Hermione, who really didn't want to hear the man anymore. She first had a lot of respect for the wizard, but he clearly had lost his marbles.

Draco helped Harry up. He stumbled a little, still utterly exhausted with the night's events.

''Let's get you home, love.'' Draco murmured in Harry's ear.

Harry merely nodded before he almost collapsed in Draco's arms.

''You know, I really want to sleep right now,'' Harry mumbled before he lost consciousness. Draco barely managed to hold him but held on strong. Hermione walked next to them and tousled Harry's hair before putting a kiss on his forehead.

Sirius and Remus helped them to apparate to Hogwarts. Finally, putting an end to the hell that was tonight.

* * *

Harry woke up in the hospital wing; he felt disorientated but also felt two arms around his waist and knew he was safe. He looked down and saw Hermione and Draco sleeping against him on both sides. He stroked their heads a little.

He felt sore from, was it last night? Or was he out for longer? He should probably wake them to ask. He firstly looked around and saw Sirius and Remus snoring in a chair nearby, and Harry snorted when he saw them—shaking his head with a fond smile.

Apparently, he wasn't as silent as he thought because both Hermione and Draco woke up at that moment.

''Harry!'' Hermione exclaimed before throwing herself completely on Harry. Harry grunted, but when Hermione apologized and tried to pull away, he held on. He buried his face in her curls, not wanting to face the rest of the world at the moment.

Draco stroked his hair and whispered sweet nothings to calm Harry down a little. He was shaking from the shock he now felt from the night at the cemetery. They hold each other until they heard someone scrape their throats.

Harry quickly wiped his face clear of evidence that he had cried, not wanting to appear weak towards anyone other than Draco and Hermione.

''You have never been weak, Harry,'' Hermione whispered when she felt what he was doing. He smiled at her and kissed her softly before turning to the other people in the room.

Sirius and Remus were awake now, and next to them were Madam Bones, McGonagall, and the Minister of Magic Fudge. Harry hadn't met the man yet, but he wasn't anything special, according to Sirius and Remus.

''Mister Potter, we need a report about last night. Can you tell us what happened in your own words?'' Madam Bones asked.

Harry nodded. ''It started when I was getting ready for the last task of the tournament. I was talking to Cedric Diggory, and a man stalked towards us. Before I could react, I was pulled away with a portkey. When I landed again, I was at the cemetery. I was, uh, I was taken by,'' Harry looked a little unsure towards Draco. Draco seemed to understand what was wrong and just nodded and put a hand on his arm.

''Lucius Malfoy took me, then Crouch came, and he was holding something. It seemed at first like he was holding a baby, but it was Voldemort in some kind of form. He was hideous to look at. Then Voldemort ordered that Crouch started a ritual, and I was tied to a headstone. There was a large kettle, and the ritual was formed from the bone of the father, flesh of the servant, and blood of the enemy. Then the baby form of Voldemort was dropped in the kettle, and he descended from it.'' Harry said in one breath. The temperature in the room seemed to have dropped considerably.

Harry took a breath to continue before he was interrupted by Fudge.

''He cannot be back. Your lying!'' Fudge said with his eyes wide as saucers.

Harry frowned. How could Fudge believe that he was lying? When there were at least twenty Aurors, who had seen it too.

''No, I'm not lying. Ask anyone who was there yesterday; Voldemort is back. He returned. He is dangerous. You need to take steps to keep the people safe.'' Harry said with a condescending tone.

''Minister, I saw it myself, so saw at least fifteen of my Aurors, so has Lord Black, Lord Potter, and the scion of the house Black, do you want to have them against you? Do you need a reminder of how many influences they have?'' Madam Bones said with an airy tone. They saw Fudge pailing slightly before nodding his head firmly.

Harry knew he liked Bones for a reason. He smirked at her, and she winked back.

''Like I was saying, Voldemort descended from the kettle, and then he wanted to duel me. We started to duel, and he didn't expect me to hold myself in a duel against him, but I have trained the last few years, and it went rather well until I sidestepped a spell, and the spell hit my wand. My wand splintered. I started to ran and ducked behind headstones so I wouldn't get hit with other spells. ''

Everybody in the room was listening intently to the story, Sirius and Remus with proud faces, Draco and Hermione with proud but also really concerned faces, and McGonagall, Fudge, and Bones with incredulous faces.

''You held your own against him? He who must not be named?'' Fudge shrieked, which was rather a strange noise from a grown man.

''Well, I just told you I did, didn't I?'' Harry snapped back. He heard Hermione stifle her giggles, and Draco snort next to him.

''So, I ran, I was taking shelter behind a large headstone, and to be honest, I was ready to give up. I hadn't had a wand, and I was against Voldemort and at least ten Death Eaters. Also, why wasn't it news that people had broken out of Azkaban? Voldemort talked about Lucius and that he had helped to get the Lestranges out.''

Harry looked between the Minister and Madam Bones, both looking pale.

''Can I assume that you didn't know?'' Harry asked while raising one eyebrow in question.

''I need to make a call. Can I use your fireplace, Minerva?'' Bones asked, and McGonagall nodded, still staring at Harry in disbelief.

''Do you want to hear the rest? Because then I'm just going back to sleep right now, I really don't want to repeat myself.'' Harry said he sounded tired, even to himself.

Madam Bones looked torn for a moment before nodding and indicating that he could continue with his story.

''I was behind a headstone when I felt something pressing in my hand, I saw a wand, it just had appeared to me, I felt confident and relieved, I was ready to face him. When I stood, I felt my cloak around my shoulders. It was a relick from my dad; it's an invisibility cloak. When Voldemort saw the wand and my cloak, he looked afraid for a moment. I didn't understand why, I still don't, so I hope I will get the story soon.'' Harry said while looking at Sirius, who just nodded at that moment.

''He talked about the Elder wand and that he didn't understand why I got that wand. And we started to duel again. After I don't know how long, I got the message from Draco that they were there. The Aurors were helping with Death Eaters that sprang away from the first line of fire. Then Voldemort saw what was happening, and he apparated away. I couldn't stop him.'' Harry said, feeling the last sentence heavy in his stomach.

Fudge had gone red in the face, but Bones looked determined.

''We will get him, Harry. You don't have to do this alone.'' Bones assured him.

Fudge looked incredulous. ''What do you mean? Why would he be involved? He seems unstable; we need to arrest him!''

Everybody looked at Fudge like he was talking Chinese instead of English.

''Okay, I don't think we can trust the Minister to keep all of this to himself. Like the Elder wand and everything. So who is in favor of erasing his memory?'' Sirius said and raising his own hand and looking around.

Draco, Harry, Hermione, and McGonagall raised their hands. Bones looked conflicted, and Remus just shook his head but was already raising his wand. Fudge tried to turn away and run but was too late.

''Obliviate!''

Fudge got a blank look on his face before it cleared.

''What? What is happening, ooo Harry! Tell us what happened.''

''Well, Minister, I'm exhausted; I'm going to sleep. Madam Bones will let you know what happened yesterday, won't you, Madam Bones?''

Madam Bones nodded stiffly before steering the Minister out of the room.

''Okay, before I go to sleep again, what can you tell me about the Elder wand?''


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait! I hope you are going to like this chapter!

Harry walked through the double doors of the Great Hall and stopped when the conversations around him shushed. He glanced around and saw almost everyone gaping at him. A couple of Slytherins glared. It was obvious that their parents had been between the Death Eaters that were arrested or hurt. 

Harry didn't feel sorry for them. He glared with intensity towards the Death Eater children. Knowing that they would hurt him if they saw him alone. Knowing that on summer break, they would go back to their homes and pledge their loyalty towards the Dark Lord. 

He flinched when he felt a hand on his shoulder. When he looked to whom it belonged, he saw the grave determination of Draco next to him. His mouth set in a thin line while glaring at the children and teens that sided with the Dark Lord. Draco knew how hard it was to walk away from family, from your own blood, but he would do it again in a heartbeat. He got back another family with more warmth and love than he ever could imagine. 

Harry smiled softly at Draco and laced their hands together before walking towards the Gryffindor table and take a seat next to Hermione. All their friends had gathered around them, and Harry felt loved. It was still silent in the Great Hall before Headmistress McGonagall stood and scraped her throat. 

''Students. As you have heard, there has been a terrible conflict last night when the tournament's last task should have taken place. Some of you have already heard what happened. Some of you have not, and some of you have seen it with their own eyes-'' She said while looking at Harry, Hermione, and Draco. They held each other's hands under the table. Not wanting to let go and getting comfort off each other. 

''- Maybe your parents will not appreciate what I'm going to tell you. But I don't believe in living in ignorance. I don't believe in the bigotry that will come from the conflicts that will arise.'' The twins started whooping and clapping for the headmistress, and a lot of students joined them. She leveled a half-hearted glare in their direction until they stopped. 

''I want a Hogwarts where no conflict will take place, I want a Hogwarts where everybody is accepted. Where it doesn't matter what your heritage is, where it doesn't matter what kind of relationship you want, and where you can trust each other.'' Clapping and cheering erupted, and Harry felt impressed and pleased with the speech McGonagall was giving. 

''But.'' All the clapping and cheering stopped with the stern look from McGonagall. 

''But, the world will change in the next couple of weeks, months, and years because a great evil has come back into our lives, back to poisoning the minds of small-minded men and women, back to create chaos and disorder. Tom Riddle, other known as Lord Voldermort-'' Gasps were heard through the hall, and Harry rolled his eyes. ''-has returned. He will try to take control over magical Britain again, just like he tried all those years ago, but we will not let him win. We will do anything in our power to stop him. To stop him from hurting innocent people because he thinks that they are not worthy of magic, that they are not worthy of living.''

Harry could see that McGonagall is struggling with her emotions, but they are being kept in check. He feels pride coursing through him, not only from him but also from Draco and Hermione through their bond. He squeezes their hands for a moment before turning back into the speech. 

''I want you all to be safe. I want you all to survive. I want you not to be a part of the war that is coming -'' A lot of protests are coming from older students and especially the Gryffindor table. Figures. 

''I know I can't stop you. I know that those who want to participate in this have their own morals, own good intentions, and want to help. But you are children. So please, if it isn't for me, then let it be for your loved ones. Stay out of the incoming war as much as you can because you are the future.'' Silence rang through the hall. You could see and almost taste the disgruntled emotions from the people that wanted to help, but they did understand. They did know that it will be dangerous, and they did know that their loved ones don't want them to help out of fear of losing them. 

''That being said,-'' McGonagall continued with a sparkle in her eyes. 

''I don't want you to be defenseless. That's why there will be extra curriculum in the next school year that will help with defense magic, next to Defense against the Dark arts. For now, I want to wish you a nice holiday and hope that you all are going to return safely next September to Hogwarts.''

Clapping erupted again through the hall. Everybody was impressed with McGonagall. Even the Slytherins that didn't want to be there. Some of them had a hopeful expression. While others just sneered and stayed seated. Harry glanced at Draco, who gave a curt nod. Nobody with hope would be left behind, and Draco and their Slytherin friends will do everything they could to help those who needed it. 

* * *

Hermione sat in her bedroom at her parent's home. She was waiting for Sirius to arrive. She had been at home for two weeks now, together with Pansy enjoying their holiday. Of course, they were at Potter manor almost every day, but Hermione wanted to be around her parents because she knew it couldn't last. 

Last night there had been another attack on muggles. Death Eaters had planned an attack on a mall in London. The mall was full of teens and families enjoying their holidays. The Death Eaters had set off an explosion inside a food court during lunch hour. There were fifty people dead. The muggle media said it was a terrorist attack. They were right, only not with the suspects or motive. 

Hermione knew that what she was going to do would be hard. Harry and Draco probably could feel her anxiety and sadness, but she didn't tell them about her plan. She needed her parents to be safe. To be away from her, because they would be in danger because of her. 

She heard the fire roar and knew that Sirius had arrived. She walked shakily downstairs towards him. He was standing inside the living room, waiting for her, with a sympathetic look on his face. 

''Are you sure you want to this, kitten?'' Sirius asked in a soft tone. 

''Yes, they need to be safe.'' She said with her head raised in defiance. She couldn't break now. 

Sirius nodded, and they walked towards the kitchen where her parents were seated. They both looked up when Sirius and Hermione entered with worried looks. 

''Is something wrong?'' Dan asked. 

''Dad-'' Hermione started before her voice broke a little. She took a deep breath when Sirius squeezed her shoulder. 

''Dad, mom, something happened just before the summer break. I told you earlier about a mad man - a wizard that had turned dark, do you remember?'' Hermione said with a shaky voice. 

Both her parents nodded and waited for further explanation. Hermione let out a big sigh before looking at her parents with tears in her eyes. 

''This madman is back. He wants to take over magical Britain, and - and wipe out the muggles. Because I'm a witch, I'm afraid you two aren't safe. That's why, with help from Sirius, I want to give you two options to remain safe.''

Helen and Dan try to protest. They are the parents, not Hermione, they can protect themselves, but with a swipe of Sirius wand, they are silenced and bound to their seats. They can't struggle or do anything, and they now know how hopeless they will be against wizards. Helen and Dan both have tears in their eyes but nod at Hermione to let her see that they are ready to listen. 

''I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I just want you to be safe!'' Hermione sobs while hugging her mother and father. 

''We understand, Hermione. Please tell us about the options you have thought up,'' Helen says while holding her daughter close. 

''Okay, the first option is that you are going into hiding. Harry and Sirius both have several houses where you can be without gaining any attention to yourselves. The upside is that you will be safe, but because you will be in hiding, you can't go out, not even work, you will be housebound for a long time. Because we don't know how long the war will be.'' 

Helen and Dan, both balk. They love to go out, travel, and even work. To consider being locked up in a house without any prospect of getting out again is not something they want. 

''What is the second option?'' Dan asks carefully, not wanting to sound ungrateful. 

Hermione gives them a watery smile. She knows her parents. She knows they will not want to stay locked up. That's why she came up with the second option, even if it will break her heart. 

''The second option is to leave Britain. Maybe go to the USA or Australia, or Europe. You should be safe there, and you can return when it's safe again here. But I will not go with you. I will stay here.'' Hermione says with determination. 

''What?! I can understand leave Britain, but why would you stay here? We want you and Pansy with us! You aren't safe here!'' Dan yells. Angry that his daughter would believe they would leave her. 

''Dad, I can't go with you, because the madman is after Harry,'' Hermione says in a soft voice and with pleading eyes. 

Dan deflates. He already knows there isn't anything he could say that Hermione would go with them. 

''But, Honey, we don't want to leave you,'' Helen says with tears in her eyes. 

''I know, I don't want you gone, but I want you to be happy, and to be safe, and to be alive!'' Hermione says, and she starts to sob again. 

Her parents throw their arms around her and hold her close. Sirius tries to swallow around a lump in his throat. 

''I will do anything in my power to keep Hermione safe. And all of the other children. We have enough room in Potter Manor,'' Sirius says while looking Dan in the eye. Dan nods and is satisfied that his daughter will be safe. 

''Okay, we will leave Britain, we always wanted to go to Australia. So we will get anything in order, and then we can leave in a week or two.'' Dan says while looking at Helen and Hermione, who still are holding onto each other. 

Sirius clears his throat, and Dan and Helen look at him.

''Hermione already thought you would choose that option. That's why everything is already set into motion. We have a portkey waiting for you, and you will be in Australia tonight, we have already fixed up a house for you, and everything in this house will go with you. Everything has already been taken care of. We only needed for you to accept.''

Sirius tells them a little sheepishly. Helen and Dan are taken aback a little but accept.

Sirius waves his wand, and everything in the whole house is shrinking down and getting into a small bag. Even the tables, chairs, beds, books, everything. Within minutes everything is packed and ready. 

* * *

Hermione walks through the floo with a blank look and red-rimmed eyes. Sirius follows closely behind, keeping an eye on her without being too obvious about it. 

The goodbye was emotional on both sides. They don't know when they would see each other again, and it is hard for Hermione. Before they could reach another room, the doors open, and Draco and Harry are tumbling in. 

Clearly upset because of the feelings they got through the bond from Hermione. Harry and Draco didn't know what she was going to do today, only Pansy, Sirius, and Remus knew. Pansy had locked herself in her room when Hermione had left for her parent's house, wanting just a couple of hours together before the change. 

''Mione! What's wrong?'' Harry says as soon as he sees Hermione's appearance. He wraps his arms around her and holds her close. 

Draco is stroking her back, looking worried about what has happened. 

Hermione slowly comes to herself and feels that she is being comforted by her boys. She starts to sob when she sees the worry in their eyes. She clings to Harry and grabs Draco's arm to hold on to. 

Sirius explains quickly what happened and that Hermione needs to rest. 

Harry and Draco feel angry that they didn't know what Hermione was planning, but understand that she needed to do this herself. Harry picks up Hermione in bridal style and walks them back to their room. 

There he lays her down softly before lying down next to her and holding her close. Draco walked around the bed to get to Hermione's other side and cuddles close too. 

Hermione cries for another hour until her eyes can't produce tears anymore. She just lies there being cuddled by her boys until a timid knock on the door. 

Harry raises his head and sees Pansy peeking her head in. 

''Hey.'' She says with a slight tremor in her voice. 

Hermione pulls her arm free and beckons Pansy closer and pulls her down to comfort her too. 

* * *

''Are you nervous?'' Sirius asked softly. 

''Yeah. They are going to do some weird ritual they didn't perform in like 600 years. I'm freaking afraid.'' Harry hissed back. 

They were waiting in one of the chambers of Gringotts. The goblin who led them there had been specific that only Sirius could join him into this room. Draco and Hermione were anxiously waiting in Ricbert's office. 

Sirius clapped him on the shoulder, but Harry could see the strain in his smile. He was nervous too. 

''You're going to be fine. The Horcrux will be out of your head by the end of the day, and we have found two others already. As soon as we have found the rest, we can destroy them.'' Sirius says with confidence. 

Harry nodded and thought back at what happened and how they found the two Horcruxes. 

**_ *Flashback* _ **

_ ''Sirius, why do we need to clear out this old house?'' Draco whined from the bookcase he was working on.  _

_ They were in Grimmauld place, a Black residence that seriously was too old to live in. It should be condemned, but Sirius told them he grew up in the house. So nobody tried to make any suggestions because they didn't know how Sirius would react.  _

_ ''Because Draco, I want everything gone of this old place. I want to forget about it and move on. That is only possible when we clear it out.''  _

_ ''Oh, thank god! We thought that you wanted to live here or something. It really should be condemned, Sirius!'' Hermione said with a relieved voice.  _

_ Everybody snickered from the disgruntled look Sirius gave.  _

_ ''No! I really want to be out of here as soon as possible. Everything that happened here-'' He didn't finish the sentence, but they got the idea. Draco clapped Sirius on the shoulder. Harry looked at him with glassy eyes, and Sirius pulled him in a quick hug.  _

_ ''Filthy mudbloods and blood traitors in my mistress home. You should burn.'' Came a grumbling voice.  _

_ Hermione gaped, and Harry and Draco already had drawn their wands in a hurry. Not expecting another person inside this old house.  _

_ Sirius gave a put-on sigh.  _

_ ''Kreacher. Stop insulting everybody and go away. Or should I give you some clothes?'' Sirius snapped.  _

_ The trio now saw the dirty house elf that insulted them. _

_ ''Of course, Lord Black, Kreacher will keep quiet and away.'' The elf snapped back.  _

_ Sirius let out another sigh. Trying to keep his temper in check. _

_ Harry was looking around the room and saw on the wall a large family tree. He saw a black mark with Sirius's name, but next to it, he saw the name, Regulus Black. He hadn't known that Sirius had a brother. _

_ He even saw Draco's name on the tree. It had changed from Malfoy to Black.  _

_ ''Sirius, I didn't know you had a brother,'' Harry said, gaining the attention of everyone in the room, even the elf.  _

_ ''That's because I never talked about him. He was a Death Eater. He joined Voldemort right after Hogwarts.'' Sirius sneered.  _

_ That was apparently the wrong thing to say because the elf lost it. _

_ ''MASTER REGULUS WAS A HERO! A HERO! HE SAVED ME! VOLDEMORT WAS EVIL! MASTER REGULUS WAS SMART! AND KIND, AND I FAILED HIM! Necklace is evil, necklace should be destroyed, but Kreacher can't destroy it, no sir, Kreacher can't, Kreacher failed master.'' Kracher started with a scream and ended in sobs on the ground.  _

_ Everybody in the room was silent and let the words sink in. Finally, Sirius shook himself out of his stupor and walked with his hands raised towards Kreacher. Like he was a wild animal.  _

_ Kreacher was still sobbing but didn't stop Sirius. Sirius knelt next to the elf and rubbed his back. Kreacher stiffened for a moment before sniffling a little and looking up into Sirius's gray eyes.  _

_ ''Kreacher, are you saying that Regulus-'' Sirius swallowed past the lump in his throat. ''-Did Regulus do something to-to stop Voldemort?'' He said softly.  _

_ Kreacher started to nod eagerly. Clearly waiting for a long time to tell his master's story.  _

_ ''Voldemort wanted to hide the necklace, but needed an elf, master was already suspicious of Voldemort, and wanted out, but he couldn't. No, he couldn't because it was dangerous. Master would die if he left. _

_ Master lent Kreacher out to Voldemort and ordered Kreacher to return as soon as task was done. Voldemort took Kreacher to a cave. Kreacher needed to drink a horrible potion.'' Kreacher was sobbing again and rocking himself like a child, trapped in his nightmare.  _

_ ''Voldemort left Kreacher to die in cave, but Kreacher was a good elf, and got back home master. Master helped Kreacher get better and then took Kreacher back to the cave. Now master drank the potion. I TRIED TO STOP MASTER, BUT MASTER WOULDN'T LET ME DRINK IT. MASTER TOLD ME TO LEAVE WITH THE NECKLACE AND D-DE-DESTROY IT. KREACHER FAILED. AND MASTER D-D-DIED.'' Kreacher wailed, sobbing against Sirius now. Sirius looked stricken and was patting the elf.  _

_ ''You did good, Kreacher, you listened to your master, and you helped Regulus. We will help you destroy the necklace.'' Harry said softly after kneeling next to Sirius and Kreacher.  _

_ ''Really?'' Kreacher sniffled while looking at Harry.  _

_ ''Yes, yes, of course, we will help. We are looking for more of those. Do you know if Regulus had found more?'' Harry asked carefully.  _

_ Kreacher seemed to think for a moment before shaking his head dejected.  _

_ ''Master has a lot of research in his room, but Kreacher doesn't know.'' _

_ Harry nodded and looked at Hermione and Draco, who were already on their way to Regulus's old room.  _

_ ''Now, Kreacher, could you get the necklace for us?'' Harry asked.  _

_ Kreacher nodded and popped away before almost immediately returning in front of them with a gold necklace with the Slytherin emblem on it. Harry gasped when he saw it. He could feel the darkness inside the necklace. He cracked his neck and felt a shiver on his spine.  _

_ ''Thank you, Kreacher, this, this is what we needed.'' _

_ After just a couple of days, they also found research from Regulus about a little shack in Little Hangleton. Sirius, Remus, and Harry went together to check the shack and found a hidden compartment with a ring. As soon as Harry saw the ring, he felt the same darkness and a wicked attraction towards the stone in the ring.  _

_ When he touched the stone, he first felt a burning sensation in his hand, but it dulled within seconds. The stone started to detach itself from the ring in front of the three of them. The ring itself held the Horcrux. The stone itself was another thing. Harry could feel the attraction to it and, without a second thought, grabbed the stone, and everything around him fell into place.  _

_ ''It's the resurrection stone.'' He whispered. His magic was reaching out and wrapping itself around the stone, knowing that he was now the Master of Death with all three of the deathly hallows in his possession.  _

**_ *End flashback* _ **

The chamber door opened and revealed three goblins in armor. Harry raised his eyebrow in question. Ricbert entered the chamber in regular clothes and closed the door behind him. 

''Goodday Lord Potter, are you ready for the ritual?''

Harry squared his shoulders and lifted his chin. 

''Yes. I'm ready. I want this to be over with.''

Ricbert nodded and guided him into a room with something that resembled a hospital bed. 

The three goblins in armor followed in, and one of them got a wicked-looking blade out. Sirius couldn't go with him into this room and was waiting just outside. 

''We will begin with the ritual. We will cut open your scar with this enchanted blade. The Horcrux will get out and fight back. All of my warriors' swords are imbedded with Basilisk venom, and they will destroy the Horcrux. You will be in a lot of pain, Lord Potter, so you can't do it yourself. Do you understand?'' Ricbert explained. 

Harry nodded and took a couple of deep breaths.

''I'm ready.'' He said with confidence. 

Ricbert gave the sign to the warrior with the blade, and Harry tensed when the blade touched his skin. 

He thought for a moment that it wasn't that bad before he started to thrash and scream. His head felt like it was on fire, he could feel his head being slashed open, and he couldn't hold back his screams. He felt blood oozing out of his scar that had opened because of the blade. 

He started feeling the burning sensation throughout his whole body. He could hear someone scream in the distance, but he didn't register who it was. Everything was pain, he didn't know how long it took, but it just went all black around him after some time. 

In de darkness, he saw a figure walking to him and kneeling in front of him. He raised his hand to touch the creature, but his or her head swiveled up, and he looked into a distorted but calm face. 

''Hello master, I've been waiting for you.''


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Same old disclaimer, I don't own Harry Potter, if you recognize anything it's not mine!

''Hello master, I've been waiting for you.'' Death told him, adoration shining in her eyes. 

Harry was taken aback for a moment. He looked around, but the room he was in was completely white. Nothing was to be seen around him. An involuntary shiver went through him. 

''Uh, hi? Where am I?'' Harry asked, he already had a feeling. He was dead. Fuck. The goblins told him it was safe!

A chuckle was heard from the woman in front of him, and she was rising to stand after being kneeling in front of him. 

''You aren't dead, Master. You are my Master. Death will not suit you, not for a long time. Indeed not for a long time. For where you are, you are in limbo. I wanted to talk to you. I'm sorry if I scared you, Master.'' The woman, Death apparently said while bowing. 

''Okaayyyy, can you hear my thoughts? And you don't have to call me Master. I rather you didn't. I'm just Harry.'' 

Death squealed and clapped her hands. 

''Oh, you're perfect! Harry, I always had my eye on you, of course, on your whole family, because they were descendants from the Peverells, but that's not important now. I watched you grow up, and you have had so much heartbreak in your young life. You saw your mother being killed. You lived with a dark soul attached to yours for fifteen years! Fifteen! Your only relatives abused you, your teacher betrayed you and prepared you for slaughter, but you didn't stand down. You fought back! And luckily, you found love! And not with one, but with two formidable people! I'm so happy for you, Harry! Can I hug you? It's like my favorite fictional person is standing in front of me. I'm a little starstruck!'' Death rambled with a grin on her face. 

Harry felt like he was slapped in the face with everything she was telling him. It was a bit much. 

''I'm not going to die if you hug me, right?'' That was what Harry said. He almost could hear Hermione scold him for doing this. 

Death clapped her hands again and flew him around his neck. He awkwardly patted her back and tried to repress the shivers that attacked him. It's not every day that Death is hugging you.

After a couple of minutes, Harry started to pull back. Death pouted but didn't say anything. 

''Can I ask you something?'' Harry asked.

''You just did, but sure!'' Death said while beaming. 

''You wanted to talk to me, that's why I'm here, about what dit you want to talk?'' 

Death turned a little more serious now. 

''I'm here to tell you that you indeed are the one that needs to kill Voldemort. He gives me a lot of extra work. Those people he is killing weren't ready to die yet. I need him to stop. I can't interfere, so that's why I'm asking you not to show mercy when the times come to confront him, Harry.'' 

''I wasn't planning on showing him mercy. Voldemort needs to be gone. We only need to find the other Horcruxes to destroy him once and for all this time.'' Harry said. He was shocked for a moment that he was ready to kill Voldemort. He technically already killed Voldemort three times when he was a baby, in his first year and in his second year. 

When he was a baby, he didn't do anything. That was the power of the spell from his mother. 

In his first year, he killed Quirrel by only touching him. He still got nightmares from how the wizard turned to dust, but it was also Voldemort. 

And the Horcrux in his second year was also killing Voldemort. Of sorts, of course, he stabbed only a diary, but it was a piece of Voldemort's soul. Yeah, he definitely was ready to kill Voldemort once and for all. 

Death was looking with awe at him. She knew he meant everything he said, and she knew what he was thinking. 

''Master, Harry, I'm glad to hear that you are ready to destroy him. I also wanted to ask you another favor.'' She was blushing now, and Harry didn't know if he would like the next request. 

''What is it?'' 

''I want you to stay my Master, even if Voldemort is defeated.'' She said with pleading eyes. 

''Why would you want that? I'm just a regular wizard. I'm nothing special.'' 

That was the wrong thing to say because Death turned livid, she was terrifying, she was glowing with power, and Harry took a step back. 

''You are one of the most powerful wizards that have lived this earth. You have a special bond with not one but two others who also are powerful in their own right. You are the chosen one to destroy Voldemort, he who flights Death. And the most important part, Death chose you, my deathly hallows found you, they felt how pure your heart is, even if you don't feel it. Don't say that you are nothing special because it's an insult.'' Death sneered before her power faded a little, and she again looked like a regular woman. 

''Harry, you are special. I want you to be my Master because you will be fair. Death needs that. You understand that people need to die and that some people need to live. Please don't put yourself down.''

Harry was taken aback by how vehemently Death stood up for him. He already knew what he was going to choose. 

''I will stay your Master, but I don't want to live forever, that's not necessary, right?'' She shook her head with a beaming smile. 

''Is it possible to keep my loved ones safe for the coming war?'' He knew that it wasn't fair to ask this from her, but it seemed that she understood. 

''If you stay my Master, I will do my best to give your loved ones the lives they should lead. They only will die when the right times come. If that's in the coming war, I can't change that, but if they should die when they are old and have lived a full life, they will survive.'' She said with a bow. 

''Then I promise on my Magic that I will stay your Master as long as I live.'' Harry pulled out his wand and put the tip to his heart. To show Death that he took the oath seriously. 

Death took a gasp of breath, and her eyes seemed to shine with joy. 

''I will promise to do anything to keep your loved ones safe, Master.'' Death said while bowing again. There was a spark of energy surrounding them until it snapped. 

Harry gasped awake, back on the hospital bed inside Gringotts. Which still feels odd because it's a freaking bank. It seemed like no time had passed at all. The goblins were huddled around him and seemed to grumble when he woke up. They seemed satisfied. The door opened, and Sirius came in, pulling him a bone-crushing hug. 

''You okay there, pup?'' 

''Never felt better,'' Harry responded, and he meant it too. It was as if darkness had lifted from his shoulders, an extra weight he didn't know he was carrying gone from his body. 

He thought back at his encounter with Death. He knew it had been real. He knew what he had to do as soon as possible. Destroy Voldemort.

* * *

''Dracooooooooo, hurry up! We're going to miss the train!'' Hermione whines from her place next to the floo. Harry, Theo, and Pansy are all already through the floo. Sirius and Remus are waiting on Draco too. 

''Something wrong, Son?'' Sirius says when Draco doesn't respond. 

''No, I just -'' He lets out a sigh and runs his hands through his hair. 

''I got a bad feeling about returning this year.'' He rushes out. Not looking them in the eyes. He can't explain the feeling. He only just knows something is going wrong. 

Sirius claps him on the shoulder and guides him to the fire. Hermione takes his hand before kissing him on the cheek. 

''I'm sure it will be fine. Otherwise, we will get through it. You know we will.'' Hermione reassures him. Draco gives her a fond smile. Knowing she is right. 

''Okay, let's go.''

The train ride goes smoothly. All their friends are in the compartment or coming by for a quick chat. Nobody is being left alone, remembering what happened after Christmas break in third year. Now they're already in their fifth! Time really flies by. 

They joke with each other and play games. Hermione reads almost the whole trip with Harry's head in her lap and Draco's arm around her. After the long trip, the group of friends needs to split up at the dining tables, Slytherin and Gryffindor at their own tables for the important diners. 

Everybody cheers when McGonagall takes the stand and welcomes them back for another year. The trio sees that a lot of benches are empty, especially at the Slytherin table. Draco knows that it's because of their families. Not trusting them back at Hogwarts. Not enough dark magic to learn. Draco thinks with a bitter thought. Harry and Hermione both send him comforting feelings through the bond. They agree with him and want him close, but they have to wait until the diner is over. 

''- And now, let's not wait any longer, let us eat!'' McGonagall says, she waves her hands, and the food appears on the tables. Just as the students want to dig in and eat the delicious food, an annoying 'hem hem' sounds. The students refrain from ravishing the food and looking up at the teacher's table with questioning looks. 

''Headmistress, may I say something?'' A sickly sweet voice is asking. Draco can see that McGonagall is irritated, her lips are thin, and her nod is curt. 

Draco searches the table for the annoying voice and finds it in the pink disaster at almost the table's end. Just next to the black shape of Snape. 

She has a fake smile on her face, and her eyes seem cold. When the eyes find him, the grin turns predatory. Draco leans back a little, trying to put as much distance in between him and the pink disaster. 

''My dear students. I'm Delores Umbridge, undersecretary to the Minister himself.'' She says and clearly is waiting for some kind of response of awe. Nobody is reacting, and Draco sees her left eye twitch. 

''The Minister himself has appointed me to be your teacher for this year. Defense against the Dark Arts is something that needs to be cherished, and I will do my best to give this to you. The Ministry wants the best education for you, even if some people are lying about certain events. We are not to judge. We are here to learn.'' The toad-like pink bitch is telling them. 

Draco quickly looks back to catch Harry's eye and sees his boyfriend narrowing his eyes at the witch. The whole summer, Harry's name was slandered by the newspaper. Draco wanted to take action and buy the Daily prophet to stop them from calling Harry crazy or a liar. 

But Harry didn't want that. He just simply said that if the Minister is still in denial, he will get what's coming for him. Since the Horcrux was cut out of Harry's head, he had been a lot more level headed. 

Harry finally looks back at Draco and shakes his head. No action just yet. But the message is clear. The Ministry wants someone at Hogwarts to keep the students in check. Well, they are in for a treat. 

* * *

After dinner, the trio quickly huddles together and walk to their own dorm. They still have permission to stay in the dorm because of their bond. 

Just when they reach the portrait, a 'hum hum' is sounded behind them. Harry takes a deep breath. He was already expecting something like this. He turns around and sees Pr. Umbridge standing in front of them with a clipboard. 

''Hello, where do you think you are going?'' Umbridge asks them. Still that sickenly sweet smile on her face. 

''To our dorm, professor,'' Hermione responds. Harry sees that she has a fake smile on her face and feels really proud that she can be this level headed right now. 

''But you two are in Gryffindor if I'm not mistaking, your dorm is up in the tower, not down in the dungeons,'' Umbridge tells them. It sounds more like a question. 

''That's correct, but we have special permission to have a private dorm. You can talk to the headmistress. She will acknowledge this.'' Hermione answers with a sweet voice. 

Harry could kiss her and is hiding his smirk behind his fist. He gently hits Draco's side when he hears him chuckling. Draco turns in into a cough when Umbridge turns her gaze at him. 

''Three students in a private dorm? A girl and two boys. How preposterous. You are not allowed to stay there, young lady.'' Umbridge huffs. 

''I do have permission.'' Hermione bristles. Harry and Draco are now too getting irritated with the older witch. 

''It's outrageous for a young witch to stay with two boys. Please think of the disgusting things they could do to you at night. No, I will not have it, I will not allow it, the Ministry will not allow it. Run along back to your Gryffindor tower. You are hereby banned from this dorm.'' Umbridge says with a tone of finality. 

Hermione raises her eyebrows before drawing her wand and sending a Patronus. 

''Headmistress McGonagall, Professor Umbridge isn't allowing me in my dorm. Could you please come by to sort things out? Please, and thank you in advance.'' Hermione tells her Patronus sweetly before sending it away. 

Umbridge is looking at them with a dumbfounded look, not expecting this outcome. Within minutes McGonagall is rushing to them. 

''Professor Umbridge, what is this? Why are you not allowing Miss Granger into her own dorm?'' 

Umbridge splutters for a moment before putting on a very fake smile. There are way too many teeth for Harry's liking. 

''I just thought it's not done for a young girl to stay with two boys in one dorm! It shouldn't be allowed!'' The pink toad says while her voice is starting to rise. 

''They have special permission from their guardians, me, and they are old enough to make the right decisions. You have nothing to say about them.-'' Umbridge tries to interrupt, but McGonagall silences her with a stern look. ''-Because you have nothing to say about what will happen in this school. Miss Granger, Mister Black, and Potter, it's already late, please go and get some sleep. I will see you tomorrow.'' She nods towards the three students, and they quickly go inside the portrait. 

They can hear yelling as soon as the portrait is closed, and they burst out laughing. 

''Well, that was strike two,'' Harry says after he catches his breath again. Draco and Hermione both nod. 

''I'm curious what she will do next.'' He muses. 

''Probably trying to punish us in other ways,'' Hermione says while getting undressed. 

''She will give us detention for some stupid reason, just watch,'' Draco adds. He seems on edge. He is putting his clothes away with a little extra huffing. 

Harry wraps his arms around Draco before kissing him softly on his neck. Draco eagerly leans back against Harry, already feeling more at ease. 

''Did you see her grin during her speech at dinner? She looked right at me, and I could swear that I could feel ants crawl all over my spine.'' Draco says while shuddering. Harry tightens his grip on Draco. Hermione walks to them and hugs Draco from the front. 

''Easy, love, she isn't done, but she didn't think about us, she will get what she deserves,'' Harry whispers in Draco's ear. 

Draco smirks and kisses Hermione on the side of her head. Then turns around to kiss Harry. 

''I love it when your Slytherin side is showing,'' Draco tells him. Hermione laughs while walking to the bed and climbing in. Draco and Harry on her heels. 

Harry lays in the middle with Hermione curled into his side and Draco's head on his other shoulder while he is stroking Hermione's curls. 

Harry is already drifting off when he feels a cold shiver go through him. He sighs and raises his head to look at the form at the end of the bed. 

Death is standing there with a massive smirk on her face. This is not the first time that she visits Harry. She does this regularly. Luckily nobody can see or hear her. They don't even see Harry responding to them. 

''Master,'' She says with a bow. 

''Death, what can I do for you today?'' Harry says, while trying not to sound exasperated. 

''I wanted to ask if I can help you.'' 

''With what?'' Harry says while frowning.

''Maybe with your new teacher, I can feel that she is a bad person.'' Deaths casually propose. She lets her fingers walk over the bed before smirking at Harry. 

''Wasn't I here for your balance? Are you seriously trying to tempt me into ordering you to kill someone? Why wouldn't you do it to Voldemort then?'' Harry says while raising his eyebrows in question. 

Death pouts and narrows her eyes at Harry. 

''I hate it when you're acting smart. Fine, I will not kill your teacher, and Voldemort is out of my reach because of those freaking Horcruxes. That's why I asked you, oh mighty Master!'' She says sarcastically. Harry snorts and barks out a laugh. 

''Please do not call my mighty Master in front of Dobby, because he will adopt it,'' Harry responds. 

''Your house-elf will not hear it from me, now tell me about your day!'' Death proposes while sitting on the end of the bed and looking with longing at Harry. 

Harry knows that Death feels lonely, so he indulges whenever she visits. She is not too bad, just a little crazy and scary, but she will not harm Harry. She sees him as a friend and as her Master. 

Harry didn't tell Draco and Hermione about Death just yet. He is afraid that they will think he is delusional. He gets enough shit thrown at him from the Daily prophet or the Ministry. Only Madam Bones and the Aurors are backing him up with the danger of losing their job if the Minister gets wind of it. 

So telling someone that he is seeing Death at least three times a week for a chat isn't something he wants to let anyone know. Not even his mates. 

* * *

The first lesson with Umbridge went like expected. She tried to provoke a reaction from Harry and expose him as a liar. 

Harry didn't respond, only smirked, trying to keep calm. Inside he was yelling at the toad-like bitch, but outside he seemed the perfect student. 

''What do you mean we don't get to use our wands?'' Theo asked when he needed to put his wand away. 

''Because you will not need them, you will only need your book.''

''What about practical training?'' Blaise cut in. 

''That's not necessary. Are you expected to be attacked in this classroom?'' She responded sweetly. 

''Well, yes,'' Harry said this time while crossing his arms. 

''What, but why?'' Umbridge spluttered.

''At this moment, I'm running three out of four-''

''Mister Potter-''

''First was Quirrell who had tried to choke me-''

''Mister Potter! St-''

''And Lockhart tried to wipe my memory-''

''Mister Potter-''

''We didn't have a teacher through the whole third year-

''This isn't-''

''And then Moody turned out to be an escaped Death Eater in disguise-''

''POTTER!''

''So, yeah, I think you will attack me before the year is over, 75% chance at least. 25% chance that you will try to kill me, a 33% chance that you are using an unforgivable.'' Harry says with a smirk before turning to Hermione, who is trying to hide her laughter. 

''Did I get the math right?'' Harry asked her. 

''Yes, you did, very proud of you, love.'' She says while kissing his cheek. 

The whole classroom is in fits of laughter while Umbridge is standing, spluttering in the middle of it. 

''DETENTION POTTER!'' She bellows. 

''Fine,'' Harry says while already packing his stuff and standing. 

''Where are you going?'' Umbridge sounds confused for a moment. 

''Out, I already got detention, so it's not like I need to stay here. I already read the book. I already know the spells, hell if you give me my OWL right now, I will ace it. So I'm going out to meet dueling tutors on the Quidditch field. I'm helping them with the lesson today.'' Harry says. He then waves at Umbridge before hurrying out of the classroom. 

She didn't even get the time to respond before the classroom door closes, and he is gone and away to the Quidditch field to meet with Sirius and Remus. 

''Your early, pup,'' Remus says when he sees Harry hurrying towards them. 

''Well, my professor let me go early,'' Harry says with a smirk. 

''What did you do, pup?'' Sirius asks with a beaming smile, already expecting some mischief. 

Harry tells them what happened, and they bellow with laughter. 

''Ah, James would have loved this,'' Sirius says while wiping his eyes. Harry gives Sirius a watery smile before helping him, and Remus set up for the dueling training they will give today. 

The regular lesson is not over yet when they see Draco also coming out of the castle. 

''What happened?'' Harry says while pulling Draco into a hug. 

''She started to slander you. I didn't want to hear any of it, so I blasted her desk when she wasn't looking, but she seemed to know anyway that it was me, so I got detention too.'' Draco says while shrugging. 

''You two are little shits, you know that, right?'' Remus says fondly. Draco and Harry smirk at each other. 

''Yeah, we know. Umbridge will not know what hit her. She tried to keep Hermione out of our dorm yesterday after the feast. She deserves us being little shits.'' Harry tells them. 

''Ah, young love, foolish to try to interfere,'' Sirius says solemnly. 

They laughed again until the lessons were over for the day. The Quidditch field was quickly filled with students that wanted to learn real defense. Learn how to defend themselves and their loved ones.

Hermione wound her way through the students and stood beside Harry and Draco, waiting for Remus and Sirius's instructions. 

They taught so much more than they had learned in all their years in Hogwarts, and now with Umbridge, they knew that they wouldn't learn anything this year either. 

* * *

From the Hogwarts entrance's shadows stood the pink toad herself, watching the lesson and learning exactly how dangerous these students would be. She quickly wrote a report to send to her boss. 

Just wait and see. She's going to make sure there will be hell to pay for the disrespect that the trio was showing her.


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the late update! I don't have any excuse, sorry!

''So, how are we going to get Umbitch fired?'' Ginny said when she burst into the trio's common room. She seemed livid while dragging Blaise in behind her. He didn't seem to mind it one bit. 

''What did she do this time?'' Draco drawled from his relaxed position on the couch. His head in Harry's lap while Harry was absentmindedly caressing Draco's hair. Jared was curled around Harry's neck. Hissing in his ear. 

Ginny was pacing through the room, gaining the attention of all occupants. Harry, Draco, Theo, and the twins were in the room. The twins and Theo were playing exploding snap but stopped now to listen. 

Hermione and Pansy were in the Ravenclaw common room, Hermione was in love with their private library, and Pansy wanted to give Luna a makeover. She hasn't succeeded yet, but Pansy started to like-like Luna, so she put in all her effort.

''The bitch gave me and Blaise detention because we were snogging in the courtyard!'' Ginny seethed. 

Blaise was grinning like a loon when she said it, but he quickly tried to hide his smile when the twins looked murderous. 

''Gin.... Too much information. We really don't want to know when you're snogging a bloke.'' Fred said with a shiver.

''Yeah, unless you wanted to share him, we don't want to hear and see,'' George said with a wink aimed at Blaise. 

Blaise was wide-eyed, and even if he got dark skin, you could see the blush spreading on his cheeks. 

''Don't tease him! If I wanted to share, I would have let you know!'' Ginny said, also aiming a wink at Blaise, who looked ready to die from mortification. 

Harry, Theo, and Draco roared with laughter until they heard a knock on the door. It was a rapid three times knock, and they knew it wasn't from anyone they knew.

Draco stood and went to open the door but regretted it as soon as the door opened. Umbridge was standing there in all her pink glory. 

''Can we help you, professor?'' Draco drawled with an uninterested stare. The tightening of her lips was the only tell that she was irritated with the disrespect, but her smile didn't falter from her face. 

''I just wanted to tell you that all clubs need to be approved by the Headinquisitor. You are all in violation of the new rule when you are schooling together with more than two people.'' She said with her infuriating smile. 

They all frowned at her before Harry spoke up. 

''We aren't a club. We are just friends hanging out.'' 

She turned her icy stare towards Harry, and he was reminded of Voldemort for a moment. A shiver went through him, and he saw Death appear behind Umbridge. He rolled his eyes because this was really a wrong moment to see her, and she was always looking for mischief. 

''That may be mister Potter, but group hangouts are not permitted either.''

''What about study groups?'' George asked

''Not more than two people, or there have to be a written request to gather together.''

''What about the common rooms? There are more people there.'' Ginny added with a glare.

''Common rooms are approved for the people in that house.'' She said with a wave as if to brush the question away. 

''This is a common room, and we live here with three people,'' Harry said with a frown. 

''Then only the people who live here are approved.'' The toad said with a glint in her eye that made Harry's blood boil.

''Who is the Headinquistitor?'' Draco asked with narrowed eyes. Harry crossed his arms, already suspecting the answer. 

''Well, that will be me, of course, the Minister himself has appointed me.'' She said with a frosty smile that was aimed to be sweet. 

All the inhabitants of the room stiffened by that declaration. Death looked a little amused at Umbridge until she strolled past her and 'bumped' into her. Umbridge went white as a sheet and gasped for a moment, clearly having felt the bump. Harry knew how it felt to him, but to a regular human, he couldn't imagine that it was a nice feeling. He raised an eyebrow at Death, and she just shrugged before sitting at Harry's feet. 

''Wh-what was that?'' Umbridge said with a hint of hysterics in her voice. Everyone looked questioning towards Umbridge. 

''Professor?'' 

''That - that feeling.'' She said while looking around her. 

''We have no idea what you mean,'' Harry said with an innocent look—earning a giggle from Death. It seemed that Umbridge could hear the giggle because she jumped into the air for a moment. 

''Wh-'' When she saw the weird looks she was getting, she straightened herself. 

''I am keeping an eye on you.'' She said with a glare aimed at Harry. It was the wrong thing to do. He glared right back before Death just thought that Umbridge deserved another lesson. 

_ ''Dolores Umbridge''  _ She spoke in a breathless voice. Harry was fighting back a smirk. He really should stop her but really didn't want to. 

Umbridge was looking with wide eyes around and was clearly afraid. Harry almost rolled his eyes but knew that it would be too much. Jared slithered over his arm down to the floor and went towards a still frantic-looking Umbridge. Who hadn't seen the movement.

Harry hissed a warning for Jared not to get hurt when Umbridge wasn't looking and too busy looking for other voices. 

Death giggled again when she saw what Jared was going to do. Draco watched Harry closely and knew that something.. other was happening, not only with Jared and Umbridge. He knew his boyfriend good enough to know that something else was the matter. But he would ask it when they would be alone. 

Jared had reached Umbridge unnoticed and slithered around her, so he was at her back. Death did some kind of spell, and Harry knew instinctively that Jared would be safe and not at risk of getting hurt at all.

Jared then bared his teeth, and Harry knew that he was going for the bite. 

_ ''You're. Next,''  _ Death hissed. It did the trick when Umbridge gasped and took a step back. Jared struck and bit her in the ankle quickly before slithering away when Umbridge shrieked. Jared was a little poisonous, so Harry knew that she would need to go to the hospital wing. 

''Are you alright?'' Harry said, faking concern. The others hadn't seen Jared bite Umbridge but Draco. It was clear that he wasn't going to say anything about it. 

''Something bit me!'' Umbridge shrieked again. 

_ ''Told you, you're next,'' _ Death said again, now near Umbridge's ear, making her jump again. Only her ankle couldn't handle that at this moment, so she fell down while yelling and shrieking. 

Umbridge was looking like she was going to cry, and that would be unfortunate. Harry sighed loudly.

''Dobby,'' Harry said calmly. 

Draco rolled his eyes but didn't say anything. The others were all looking like they were holding back laughter, and Fred and George were struggling to breathe at the moment. 

Dobby appeared with a pop. 

''Master Harry, how can Dobby help you today?'' He said happily. 

''Could you escort Professor Umbridge to the hospital wing? It seemed like something bit her, but we don't know what.'' He said in a monotone voice, not looking away from Umbridge. She was fidgeting on the floor and seething silently. 

''Of course, Master Harry!'' Dobby then turned around to Umbridge before she snarled.

''Don't touch me, you little-'' Before she could finish, Dobby snapped his fingers, and she disappeared from sight. He then turned around to Harry again, who was a little distracted from Death, who was rolling on the floor laughing.

''She was nasty,'' Dobby declared before bowing and popping away again. 

It was like everybody at once lost their battle against holding back their laughter and collapsed in fits of it. 

Only Draco and Harry kept their wits. Harry because he was still looking bemused at Death and Draco because he was watching Harry. 

''This could mean problems,'' Draco said softly, only for Harry to hear. He focused then on Draco. 

''You mean Umbridge,''

Draco nodded. He was debating on saying something and decided that he needed to. 

''And whatever was happening just now, but-'' Draco raised his hand before Harry could interrupt. ''-tonight with Mione.'' 

Harry deflated and knew that he needed to tell them about Death. He looked back at Death, who had followed the conversation. She had a glint in her eyes that Harry didn't know if he liked. 

''You can tell them, master. They should know.'' She said with an eager nod. 

Harry raised his eyebrow at her in question, and she knew what he meant and rolled her eyes. 

''I will show myself to them.'' She said with faux-irritation. 

Harry looked back at Draco and nodded. They would talk tonight.

* * *

Tonight came way sooner than Harry liked. He was nervous about how they would react, but somewhere he knew that it didn't matter.

''Harry, please stop walking a hole in the carpet and just spit it out,'' Draco said with a little irritation.

Hermione was watching him intently and was silently waiting for him to break. 

''Okay, so, on the graveyard, something happened.'' Harry began.

They both nodded and narrowed their eyes at the reminder of the horrible evening not so long ago.

''Apparently, the invisibility cloak I got from my father is something really rare, like, so rare there is only one of it. Together with the elder wand and the resurrection stone-''

''They make the master of Death.'' Draco and Hermione both finished, familiar with the stories. 

''Yes, and the elder wand was in possession of Dumbledore-''

''But you disarmed him back when we confronted him,'' Hermione said, and her eyes were growing wide. Harry nodded again. 

''When my wand splintered in the graveyard, something inside me called for the wand that belonged to me because I had defeated the previous master,'' Harry explained.

''So you have the cloak and the wand, what about the stone?'' Draco said while sitting on the edge of his seat. His hands were folded in his lap.

''That one I found this summer in one of the Horcruxes,'' Harry said while holding out his hands and calling to his hallows. 

The wand appeared in his hand, and just like that, the cloak set on his shoulders, then the stone hovered over his hand. He closed his hand around it and looked back at Hermione and Draco, who were both gaping at him. He blushed a little and scratched the back of his head. 

''Yeah, so, I'm the master of death?'' He said, sounding a little unsure. 

''Bloody hell, what does it mean exactly?'' Draco said finally after being silent for a moment. Hermione was walking around him and eyeing him up. Harry rolled his eyes at her antics.

''Well, it means that I need to hold the balance between the living and Death, and it means that Death is stalking me.'' He ended in a murmur. 

''Wait, what?'' Hermione said with wide eyes. 

Harry let out a big sigh. 

''Death. Any time now.'' He said, a little exasperated. 

Death appeared next to him and bowed to him. 

''Master, you called?'' She said with cheer. Draco and Hermione were again gaping, but now at Death. 

''What the-'' 

''Yeah,'' Hermione finished before walking carefully towards Death.

''My name is Hermione-''

''Hermione Jean Granger, born on 19 September 1979, daughter of Helen and Dan Granger.'' Death chirped. She then looked towards Draco, who had gone a little pale. 

''Draco Lucius Black, born Malfoy, born on 5 June 1980, the only son to Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy. It's an honor to meet you both. Well, that you can see me too because let me tell you, you are so cute together with the three of you!'' She rambled with a big smile. Draco and Hermione both let out an awkward laugh before turning to Harry, who had slapped his hand over his face. 

''How much have you seen us?'' Hermione said with narrowed eyes.

''Well, I talk to Harry about three times a week when you are asleep.'' She said with a shrug. 

''What?'' Hermione said, and she rounded on Harry, who looked really guilty for a moment. 

''SO, I was going to tell you that-'' 

''Potter, I don't care. Was this all you had to tell us? Or is there something more?'' Draco said with amusement in his voice and eyes when he looked at Hermione, who was still glaring. 

''How can you say that!'' Hermione seethed.

Draco pulled her in his arms and kissed her on her head. She pouted when she couldn't get away. The boys were both stronger and larger now. 

''Because nothing is wrong. Harry made a friend,'' 

Death clapped and shrieked with glee, making Harry roll his eyes again.

''Master, they are so great! I already knew that, of course, but now it is confirmed.''

''I know,'' Harry said then in a fond voice while looking at Hermione and Draco. 

* * *

Harry had not calculated on the viciousness of Umbridge when she returned from the hospital wing two days later. Her ankle was bandaged, and Harry had to suppress an eye roll. Noway that Pomphrey hadn't healed her already. 

Nobody seemed to have any sympathy for her. Harry couldn't muster any either.

''Wands away, we are going to read the next passage,'' She then waved her wand to the board in front of the class when the board started to smoke. It went up in flames in an instant, and Death stood cackling behind the board, making Harry groan inwardly. Umbridge let out a meep before trying to douse the fire. When it didn't work, Hermione tried, and the fire went down instantly. Death was pouting at Hermione for ruining her fun, but Hermione didn't respond. 

She couldn't unless she wanted Umbridge wrath, who was now lecturing about how pranks were dangerous and how the culprit needed to step front for correct punishment.

Harry tried to keep an eye on her and shoo Death away. She was really taking it too far with the pranks. Fred and George were starting to ask questions because they thought Harry was causing the trouble and tried to open a prank war, but Harry wasn't complying.

Umbridge narrowed her eyes at Harry, and he knew that he was fucked again. He already had gotten detention the first lesson, but it was with almost half of the class back then. Something in him told him that he would serve detention alone that night, and that same something told him that wasn't a good idea.

''Potter, would you care to tell me why your wand is on the table?'' Harry cursed himself. He just got it out of his pocket because it fell out constantly. 

''Because-'' He tried to explain, but Umbridge interrupted him.

''Not another word, Potter. Detention. Tonight.'' She said with a manic glee in her eyes. Harry was silently seething but nodded. Already knowing that she would only make it worse if he didn't accept.

''But profe-'' Hermione tried to interrupt, but Harry silenced her. 

_ Don't. I don't want you to get in trouble.  _ Harry send her the message through their bond, and Hermione looked disgruntled for a moment before nodding once. 

Umbridge looked like she had won the fucking jackpot and just went on with the lesson. 

Hermione kept giving Harry anxious glances, Harry was silently seething, and he felt bad for Hermione and Draco that they would feel the frustration and anger through the bond. He tried to calm down with breathing exercises, luckily Death was gone now and didn't make it worse. He would talk with her later about boundaries and getting Umbridge when he wasn't within sight so he wouldn't get the blame every time.

Hermione and Harry got to the Great Hall for dinner and were welcomed by Draco and their friends. 

''What's wrong?'' Draco asked immediately when they were within hearing distance. 

Harry just frowned and wanted to answer when Hermione started talking. 

''Umbitch, of course. Harry has detention for doing nothing! His wand was only lying on the desk! It is outrageous. We should talk with McGonagall.'' 

Harry cracked a smile at the passionate way Hermione explained it. He gave her a quick kiss before settling down to eat. 

''It's just for one night,'' Harry said calmly. It wasn't how he really felt, and looking at the glances Draco and Hermione were giving him. They didn't believe him. 

After dinner, he went to Umbridge's office and was let in after knocking. The whole room was pink, and everywhere he looked, he saw kitten dishes hanging off the wall. He shuddered in disgust. The kittens were cute, but it was way too much pink for his poor eyes.

''Mister Potter, I see that you still have manners to be on time. Hopefully, you will not try again to use your wand in my classroom.'' She said with a manic grin before handing him some parchment and a quill. He frowned at the quill.

''Professor, I have my own quill.'' Harry still didn't understand why they didn't use regular pens but didn't say that out loud to a bigot like Umbridge.

''You'll use this one tonight.'' She said with a little uptick in her smile. Harry was a little grossed out but didn't say anything.

''What do I need to start writing?'' 

''I need to listen to my superiors.'' 

Harry grimaced at the sentence but was determined to walk out here as soon as possible without any problems.

''How many times?'' He ground out, trying to keep his anger in check. 

''Until it sinks in.'' She said with another creepy smile. She then focused on paperwork at her desk. Harry frowned but started writing.

He felt a little tingle in his hand but ignored it at first. He saw that the ink was red and that he hadn't had an inkpot, but he kept writing. When the tingle in his hand turned painful, he let out a little gasp. He looked at his hand and saw the sentence he was writing forming on his hand. 

Harry glared up at a still smiling Umbridge. He gritted his teeth before he saw Death appear next to Umbridge. He didn't say anything but was still glaring at Umbitch.

''Is something wrong, Mister Potter?'' 

''This quill uses my blood to write.'' He said through clenched teeth.

''That's correct,'' Umbridge said, and Death glared at Umbridge.

Harry settled back in his chair, done with Umbridge and her antics. She was going down. If she was using this quill on him, it wouldn't surprise him if she used it on other students. He couldn't let that happen.

He shook his head at Death, not ready yet for her to intervene.

''So, why do you hate me so much?''

''I don't hate you,'' She was quick to reply.

''I beg to differ. You are going out of your way to torment me and the ones I see as mine.'' He was now relaxing in the chair he was sitting in, refusing to write another sentence. The tightening on her mouth let Harry see that she wasn't amused at the moment. 

''And who do you see as yours?'' 

''My friends, my mates-''

She scoffed then when he said, mates.

''Is it because of Hermione and Draco?'' He said with a frown. 

''You mean the mudblood and the traitor?'' She said while seething. Harry could see that she was losing her cool demeanor and wanted to see her unraveled. 

''That's not really language to use to describe your students, don't you think?'' Harry gritted out. He blocked out the messages he got from Draco and Hermione at that moment, who both could feel his anger.

She scoffed again and stood now.

''I will call them however I please. They are a disgrace, just like you and your mudblood mother. And now you've got it in your head that you are going to vanquish the Dark Lord and that he has returned.'' She scoffed again. 

She was really a bigotted bitch, and Harry had heard enough. 

He stood too, and he got a few inches on Umbridge while standing. 

''You forgot a couple of things.'' 

''Like what?'' She said with a sneer. 

''Like that, you really shouldn't say anything bad about my mates. I don't care what you say about me, but you have insulted my mates and my mother.'' He calmly and slowly walked to the desk she was sitting at, and she scowled at him. 

''Get back to your seat, Potter.''

''No, I don't think I will.''

''You will get another detention.''

''I don't think I will get that either.'' 

''And why would you think that?''

''Because you really should listen to your superiors.'' He said, and he let a manic grin bloom on his face. She flinched and looked taken aback for a moment. 

''Why do you call yourself superior to me? You are just a student, not worth my time!'' She was bordering on hysterics. It was clear that Harry was getting on her nerves. 

''Well, Dolores. It seems that you haven't learned your lesson. You see, I'm not a regular student. I'm not even a regular person or wizard. I'm the master of Death, and she really likes to please her master.'' Harry said while not looking away from Umbridge. 

Dark shadows erupted from behind her, but she wasn't looking at them. She was focused on Harry and seemed determined to get him to break. 

Death was closing in on Umbridge, and she mirrored Harry's manic smile. 

''Get seated, Potter! I will have you expelled!'' 

''Tsk-tsk-tsk, that is not how you talk to your superior.'' 

She was getting redder and redder with each minute that passed, and the shadows were almost touching her. Harry could feel the cold wash over him, and he saw Umbridge shiver. 

''What kind of dark magic is this!'' She shrieked while trying to get away now she had finally seen the shadows.

''It isn't dark magic. It's just special magic, magic that you and I will never possess, but as I said, Death likes to please her master, and you've proved to be a problem.'' Harry calmly stated, his anger was gone, he could only feel Death's calm, she was looking at him in pure adoration. 

He looked at her while Umbridge was screaming, feeling the coldness washing over her.

''Don't kill her, just play with her for a while and make sure she can't point any fingers in my direction. Are we clear?''

''Of course, Master. Just like you said, I only want to please.'' Death said with a big smile. Umbridge's eyes had widened, and she was looking fearfully at Death, finally able to see her. She started to scream until the shadows closed around her, and the screams ended with it. 

Death looked back at Harry before blowing him a kiss. She then vanished from sight with an eery giggle that made goosebumps rise on Harry's skin. 

Harry calmly walked back to his dorm, but the calmness was a front. Inside he was panicking and screaming. 

When he finally closed the door behind him, he collapsed on the floor of the dorm. Voices brought him back to the present, and he felt Draco and Hermione's arms around him. 

''rry, Harry! Please, please, talk to us! What happened?'' Hermoine cried, he saw that she had tear streaks on her face, and he raised his hand to wipe them away. 

''We probably need to tell McGonagall that she needs to search for a new defense teacher, again.'' He softly said before his exhaustion washed over him, and sleep took him like the darkness that had taken Umbridge.


End file.
